Federal health officials are calling for a bigger effort to fight tick-borne diseases.
In a report earlier this month, an advisory committee for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services called for improved diagnosis, lab testing and treatment, as well as more funding in fighting Lyme disease and other tick-related diseases.
And the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this month said that state and local health departments reported a record number of cases of tick-borne disease in 2017. Cases of Lyme disease, anaplasmosis/ehrlichiosis, spotted fever rickettsiosis (including Rocky Mountain spotted fever), babesiosis, tularemia, and Powassan virus disease all increased — from 48,610 cases in 2016 to 59,349 cases in 2017. Rocky Mountain spotted fever, despite its name, is relatively common here in the South and in much of the nation.
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