Lyme Disease Bill Clears Committee; Carpino: Legislature heard voices of residents

Rep. Christie Carpino (Cromwell, Portland) is pleased to announce that House Bill 5629, An Act Designating May as Lyme Disease Awareness Month in Connecticut, was passed in the Government Administration and Elections Committee, March 19.

This bill would establish May, each year, as Lyme disease awareness month in order to heighten public awareness of the presence and available treatments for Lyme disease. The bill language states that suitable exercises will be held in the State Capitol for the observance.

Rep Carpino proposed this bill on behalf of colleagues and constituents that suffer from the ill effects of Lyme Disease.

“Lyme Disease is a serious condition. We’ve seen it impact our friends and neighbors. Awareness is the first step towards our ultimate goal of prevention,” said Rep. Carpino.

Cromwell resident, Elena Zajac, suffers from late stage Neurological Lyme Disease. She thanked Rep. Carpino for her role in proposing this legislation.

“This is a step forward in recognizing one of the most misdiagnosed, misunderstood and devastating diseases in our state and country as a whole. Lyme is commonly believed to be difficult to contact and easy to cure, however that belief is anything but true. Lyme and its many co-infections have reached epidemic levels. Connecticut is an endemic area for this vector borne bacteria,” said Zajac.

“It’s time to talk about Lyme and stop trying to ignore the truth about how devastating and potentially deadly this bacterial disease can be,” she said.

California has designated the month of May as Lyme Disease Awareness Month.

HB 5629 will soon be voted on in the House Chamber to become law.