New national public health strategy to combat rising tick-borne diseases

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently released a national public health strategy to prevent and control vector-borne diseases in the population. The national strategy was drafted by Maine Republican Susan Collins and Minnesota Democratic Sen. Tina Smith and required as part of the Kay Hagan Dani Act, signed into law in December 2019. Senator Collins met with the HHS Assistant Secretary. Health Commander Rachel Levine met with us earlier this month to preview the release of this strategy.

The strategy aims to address the growing public health threat posed by vector-borne diseases (VBD), including tick-borne diseases, according to a statement from Collins' office. As required by the Kay-Hagan Tick Act, this strategy defines strategic goals for combating vector-borne diseases, establishes benchmarks to measure progress toward achieving the goals, and uses data to It seeks to better coordinate collections, research, and programs and activities across the federal government. Diagnosis, treatment, and vaccine development.

“This national public health strategy is an important step in slowing the spread of ticks and other vector-borne diseases that affect too many families and communities in Maine and across the country,” Collins said. Ta. “As the authors of the Kay Hagan Tick Act that necessitated the development of this strategy, this report clearly outlines the public health threat posed by vector-borne diseases. We must not lose momentum in our efforts to improve surveillance, diagnosis and detection, prevention, and control measures to combat the devastating diseases bites can cause.”

The VBD National Strategy outlines five goals to protect people from disease, suffering and death from VBD. These include aiming to:

• Better understand when, where, and how people are exposed to VBD and get sick or die.

• Develop, evaluate, and improve tools, methods, and guidance for diagnosing VBD and its pathogens.

• Develop, evaluate, and improve tools, methods, and guidance to prevent and control VBD.

• Develop and evaluate drugs and treatment strategies for VBD.

• Disseminate and implement public health tools, programs, and collaborations to prevent, detect, diagnose, and respond to VBD threats.

The VBD National Strategy also calls for further collaboration to achieve U.S. public health goals, including setting a goal of reducing the number of laboratory-confirmed Lyme disease cases by 25% by 2035. and encourages innovation.

Last year, the Maine CDC reported a record 2,904 confirmed cases of Lyme disease, and the Maine Tick Research Institute found that deer ticks are expanding their range further north and east.

As vice chair of the Appropriations Committee and member of the Health Committee, Mr. Collins secured a $13.5 million increase for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Lyme Disease and Vector-Borne Disease Program. This program supports programs authorized under the Committees on Appropriations. Kay Hagan Dani Act – Included in the FY 2023 Appropriations Bill. The bill also includes approximately $240 million in additional funding to support National Institutes of Health laboratories that research Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases.

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