Continuing Ellen's post from yesterday, I went to the CBS website and copied the text Dr David Marks (ch, 2 news) newscast which accompanied the report of Sen Schumer's appearence on LI regarding a bill to research LD...
FINALLY SOMEONE on the news is paying attention to this illness!!!
Good weekend, everyone!
Lyme Disease Becoming An Epidemic In New York Sen. Schumer Jumps Into Fray, Introduces New Bill
Dr. David Marks, M.D. Reporting
(CBS) NEW YORK There are more than 200,000 new cases of Lyme disease in this country each year. And New York is at the epicenter of this epidemic.
"Nassau and Suffolk counties are on track for one of the worst Lyme disease seasons ever. That is true of the whole metropolitan area in general," Sen. Chuck Schumer said.
He was on Long Island on Thursday drumming up support for a bipartisan bill called "the Lyme and Tick-borne Disease Prevention, Education, and Research Act."
"It would authorize $100 million over five years for increasing and coordinating prevention, treatment and research of Lyme disease," he said.
The Lyme tick is actually very small and can be hard to detect on your body. And the initial symptoms can be relatively mild. But experts say that educating people about the signs and symptoms of Lyme disease -- like rashes, fever, body aches, malaise and fatigue -- can lead to early diagnosis and treatment.
That's important because if it's left untreated, Lyme disease can become chronic and disabling, affecting the joints, heart and nervous system.
"Fifteen to 34 percent of people who develop the disease might go on to develop chronic Lyme disease," said Pat Smith, president of the Lyme Disease Association.
People like Joanne Annunziato, who was infected as a teenager.
"I was on home tutoring, I missed a couple years of high school," she said.
Joanne is better now that she's been treated with antibiotics. But Schumer said the experiences of Joanne, and thousands like her, should motivate the government to take action.
"I don't think there is a disease that is as widespread and causes as much harm that gets such little attention from the federal government," the Senator said.
The bill also calls on the CDC to investigate a tick called the "Lone Star" tick, which has now migrated to New York from Texas. The Lone Star tick is more aggressive than the Lyme tick we're used to. So research into prevention and treatment is even more important.
(� MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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