Senator Helming: New York Needs to Step Up Lyme Disease Efforts

GENEVA – Senator Pam Helming today called on the Governor and Democratic Majority in the State Senate to include $2 million in the state budget, and take action on a series of bills, to help battle Lyme Disease. Senator Helming has been working closely with local advocates, particularly the Ontario County Lyme Disease Support Group, and is a former member of the Senate’s Task Force on Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases. Last year, she successfully advocated for $1 million in funding through the state budget to raise awareness and increase research.

“Lyme and other tick-borne diseases continue to be on the rise, and I have been working hard to secure important funding and resources for our communities affected by this growing public health issue. I am proud that we were able to secure $1 million in last year’s state budget for education and research. However, we must do more. Lyme and other tick-borne diseases impact thousands of individuals and families across our region. We have to continue to fight for resources for our communities – including children, who are at the highest risk of Lyme disease exposure, as well as our hardworking farmers whose livelihoods depend on working outside all day,” Senator Helming said.

As the Senate Chair of the Legislative Commission on Rural Resources, Senator Helming hosted an Informational Forum on Lyme and Tick-borne Diseases in September 2017 in Canandaigua. At this event, a panel of experts, including representatives from Cornell University, SUNY Upstate Medical University, the Ontario County Public Health Department, and SUNY Adirondack, presented to more than 150 people and answered their questions. When asked if they had been personally affected by Lyme or tick-borne diseases or knew someone who was, the vast majority of the audience raised their hands.

Specific bills Senator Helming is co-sponsoring to address these issues are:

• S.1247 – Establishes grants to support graduate medical education in Lyme and tick-borne diseases
• S.1306 – Creates a pilot program for Lyme and tick-borne disease testing in children
• S.1307 – Establishes requirements for reporting Lyme and tick-borne diseases after death
• S.1345 – Requires the New York State health care quality and cost containment commission to issue a report on coverage for chronic Lyme disease