Bill Text: NY K01094 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Memorializing Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim April 2024, as Lyme Disease Awareness Month in the State of New York

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2024-04-15 - adopted [K01094 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-K01094-Introduced.html

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Assembly Resolution No. 1094

BY: M. of A. Barrett

        MEMORIALIZING  Governor  Kathy  Hochul to proclaim
        April 2024, as Lyme Disease Awareness Month  in  the
        State of New York

  WHEREAS,  The  health and well-being of the citizens of the State of
New York are of paramount importance to this Legislative Body; and

  WHEREAS, Lyme disease  is  a  common  but  frequently  misunderstood
illness  that,  if  not  caught  early  and  treated properly, can cause
serious health problems; and

  WHEREAS, According to the federal Centers for  Disease  Control  and
Prevention  (CDC)  and  the  New  York  State Department of Health, Lyme
disease was identified and named in 1977, when arthritis was observed in
a cluster of children in and around Lyme, Connecticut; and

  WHEREAS, The Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE)
designated Lyme disease as a nationally notifiable disease in January of
1991; and

  WHEREAS,  Lyme  disease,  found  in   approximately   65   countries
worldwide,  is  caused  by  the  bacterium  Borrelia  burgdorferi and is
transmitted to humans and animals through the bite of an infected  black
legged tick, Ixodes scapularis, commonly called the deer tick; and

  WHEREAS,  There  are  more  than a dozen tick-borne illnesses in the
United States, in addition to Lyme disease; one tick may carry more than
one disease resulting in people receiving more than  one  "co-infection"
from a single tick bite; and

  WHEREAS,  It is difficult to diagnose co-infections because symptoms
are very common, but co-infections generally result  in  a  more  severe
illness, with more symptoms and a longer recovery period; and

  WHEREAS,  Those  with Lyme and other tick borne diseases can present
symptoms that mimic and can sometimes be misdiagnosed as mental illness,
depression, nutritional deficiencies or Alzheimer's disease; and

  WHEREAS, Infected ticks normally live  on  deer  and  mice  and  the
majority  of  tick  bites occur in the summer months when ticks are most
active, and when more people are enjoying the outdoors; and

  WHEREAS, According to the CDC, Lyme disease is found most frequently
in the upper Midwest and Northeast United States; in 2015, 95%  of  Lyme
disease  cases  were  reported  from  14  states: Connecticut, Delaware,
Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New  Hampshire,  New  Jersey,
New  York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin;
and

  WHEREAS, In 2021, the federal CDC estimated that 476,000 people  are
diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease each year while only 35,000 cases
of the disease are actually reported; and

  WHEREAS,  Lyme  disease  became reportable in New York State in 1986
and is the most commonly reported tick-borne disease in the state,  with
over 7,000 cases reported each year; and

  WHEREAS, Over a 13 year period, Lyme disease was the listed cause of
death  of  nine  New  York residents outside of New York City, with five
victims from the mid-Hudson Valley region; and

  WHEREAS, Lyme disease is hard to diagnose because  the  most  common
sign individuals and doctors look for when determining if one contracted
Lyme  disease  is  a  red  bulls  eye  rash  surrounding  the  tick bite
("erythema migrans"); however, this rash does not appear in a quarter of
Lyme disease cases; the other indications of  this  disease  are  common
flu-like symptoms and joint pain, which often lead to misdiagnosis; and

  WHEREAS,  With  the  arrival  of  Spring, more people will enjoy the
outdoors and come into  contact  with  ticks;  the  observance  of  Lyme
Disease  Awareness  Month  provides  an opportunity for the State of New
York to  focus  on  and  bring  awareness  of  Lyme  disease  and  other
tick-borne diseases to its citizens; and

  WHEREAS,  Lyme  Disease  Awareness  Month provides an opportunity to
focus on this significant and complex disease, to provide information on
and raise public awareness of its causes, effects and treatments, and to
underscore important education and research efforts surrounding Lyme and
tick-borne diseases; now, therefore, be it

  RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its  deliberations  to
memorialize  Governor  Kathy  Hochul  to  proclaim  April  2024, as Lyme
Disease Awareness Month in the State of New York; and be it further

  RESOLVED, That a copy of this  Resolution,  suitably  engrossed,  be
transmitted  to The Honorable Kathy Hochul, Governor of the State of New
York.