US Senator Chuck Schumer on Board of Empire State Lyme Disease Association

On October 16, 2007, Empire State Lyme Disease Association was very pleased to announce the addition to our Board, of a staunch advocate and supporter of Lyme patients both here in New York and across the US. We extended a heartfelt welcome to US Senator Chuck Schumer (NY) who consented to become an honorary board member of Empire State Lyme Disease Association, Inc. 

We are grateful to the Senator for his prior work on Lyme disease and look forward to working with him as we move forward to eradicate this devastating disease. His concern and sincerity are reflected in his acceptance to work more closely with patients and advocates in New York as well as those on the national level. 

Senator Schumer has said, “I am happy to serve as an honorary board member of the Empire State Lyme Disease Association. As I continue to fight for more funding for research and technology on the federal level, this organization will play a vital role on the local level to promote education, prevention, and treatment of Lyme Disease. I look forward to working together to mitigate the impacts of this horrible disease.” 

Pat Smith, LDA President, stated,
“New York leads the country in Lyme disease case numbers with 75,233 cases reported from NY alone to CDC from 1990 through 2006. Yet, little is being done to protect or educate the public about the disease. Even with prompt treatment, many of those New Yorkers infected with Lyme disease seem to relapse after a standard course of antibiotics, and tests that accurately diagnose the disease and prove that the Lyme bacteria are totally eradicated from the body after treatment have yet to be developed. Concerned officials like Senator Schumer can make a difference in New York and on the national level, bringing the considerable resources of government to bear on the vast array of tick-borne diseases affecting people everywhere.” 

Lyme disease is called the great imitator. If under treated or missed in the early stages, Lyme disease can mimic viruses, attention deficit disorder, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis, Lupus, dementia, Parkinson's, ALS, autoimmune diseases, stress-related illnesses, arthritis, hearing disorders and others. 

Preventing Lyme disease is difficult in part because the ticks can as small as the period at the end of this sentence and can go unnoticed. Approximately 50 percent of people with Lyme disease don’t recall a tick bite and less than 50 percent have the “typical bulls-eye rash.” Standard Lyme tests may miss up to 75% of cases. As tick populations increase, more people will contract this disabling chronic tick-borne disease. Unfortunately, our children are at highest risk of acquiring the disease, thus ESLDA is presenting a special program on Oct 20 in Manorville called Children of Lyme. See http://www.EmpireStateLymeDiseaseAssociation.org/ for further details on the program. 

Empire State Lyme Disease Association is an organization dedicated to educating the public about the spread of tick-borne diseases in New York State. 

Last Modified: March 20, 2008