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Originally posted by pmerv:
Dear Friends,

Dr. Jones doesn't need any promotion from me - we all know he is a saint. I want to concentrate on how this particular case is unique and worth defending - because it is not just about Dr. Jones, it is about the Lyme disease standard of care and our access to Lyme-literate doctors.

Yale is our historic enemy, home to Allen Steere when he was doing his original study in Old Lyme, Connecticut and now home to Eugene Shapiro, MD, the expert witness that the Connecticut Medical Board prosecutor will use in the Jones case. Shapiro has been widely quoted in the media with such gems as:

"People would rather say, 'I think I have Lyme disease' than 'I'm getting old and tired.'" [ELLE magazine, December, 2000];

"It's a lot more socially acceptable to have Lyme disease than to be depressed," [Healthscout, Jan 15, 2001] and, from his grand rounds at Stanford University School of Medicine;

"This isn't AIDS that we're talking about or preventing, folks. It's not a big deal if you get Lyme disease. It's easy to treat and cure." [09-24-04]


Eugene Shapiro is also a major player in the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) and is on the panel currently working on new practice guidelines for Lyme disease that IDSA intends to publish this spring.

Standard of Care or Standard of Carelessness?

The mainstream standard of care for Lyme disease in the US is largely dictated by the IDSA. Currently that treatment is limited to 2-3 weeks. Attendees at a recent meeting of the IDSA were informed that new guidelines will recommend 10 DAYS of treatment! The IDSA also does not believe in chronic Lyme disease but talks about "post-Lyme syndrome." The panel has indicated that they are not interested in any input from Lyme patients or the doctors who treat us.

Access to Care

Patients across America and abroad have trouble finding a Lyme-literate doctor to treat them. Most are either closed to new patients or booked for months in advance. Every time one of our doctors is persecuted, it has a deterrent effect on other doctors being willing to treat Lyme disease. Imagine if Dr. Burrascano had lost his case!

Telemedicine is a hot new topic and plays an important role in the treatment of Lyme where there are so few treating physicians and they are often located far from their patients. It is neither practical nor economically feasible for patients to travel hundreds or even thousands of miles routinely for treatment. Telemedicine issues are central to this case, as Dr. Jones was treating a child in Nevada.

It will be enormously important if Dr. Jones can win his case, not just to vindicate "Saint" Jones, but to preserve our access to care.

Dr. Jones has treated over 7,000 children and is the only training physician for pediatric Lyme and routinely consults with doctors treating children. The loss of his work to the community would cut deeply.

It is wonderful that Dr. Jones, at his advanced age, is willing to stand up and fight! He has assembled a great defense team and has the advice, counsel and help from some of our best and brightest experts in the treatment of Lyme. We must stand with him! Please give as generously as you are able.

"The Dr. Charles Ray Jones Legal Defense Fund"
C/O George Heath, III (CPA)
26 Fairlawn Drive
Wallingford, CT 06492
203-782-4343 (work)

Please make your checks out to the "Charles Ray Jones Legal Defense Fund" and be sure to write "GIFT" in the memo section of the check.

Legal defense funds are not tax deductible. If you have further questions, please contact Dr Jones' office at 203-772-1123.

Thank you all.

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