|
About the Lyme Bill and Lyme Politics
NOTE: This was 2008.
Summary
Despite the growing epidemic of Lyme disease in the US, Congressman Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Chair of the House health subcommittee, REFUSES to schedule the Lyme Bill, HR741 for a hearing, despite thousands of calls from Lyme sufferers across the country, and a Lyme patient protest outside his Long Branch NJ office on May 7.
Instead, Rep. Pallone is deferring to the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), whose Lyme diagnosis and treatment guidelines have been mandated by the Attorney General of Connecticut to undergo an open review under the direction of a specialist in medical ethics. This mandate results from the CT Attorney General’s investigation which found financial conflicts of interest and exclusion of scientific evidence in the IDSA’s Lyme guidelines development process.
Rep Pallone, in a May 7 press release, asks suffering Lyme patients and the at-risk public to wait another year or more for the results of the IDSA’s Lyme guidelines review, as mandated by the CT Attorney General’s investigation, when the Lyme Bill does not even address Lyme diagnosis or treatment, focusing instead on research, education and prevention!
PLEASE READ: “Behind the Pallone Decision” a letter by Pat Smith, President, Lyme Disease Association provides a thorough and an eye-opening examination of this issue.
September 27, 2008 C-Span video of the Lyme Bill debate in the House of Representatives. This is the real thing!
Click here to Read Pat Smith’s Update and watch the video.
URGENT! Keep up the pressure on Rep. Pallone & the Senate HELP committee to schedule a hearing for the Lyme Bill.
WATCH VIDEOS:
Pat Smith, LDA President, speaks with Pallone’s Long Branch NJ office staff about Pallone’s May 7 press release, while patients protest outside. View on YouTube
Patients messages to Rep. Pallone (YouTube) More Videos
Rational people must ask: WHY does Rep. Pallone refuse to schedule a hearing for a bill that provides funding for research and education for Lyme disease,
- the fastest-growing vector-borne disease in the US
- for which children are the highest at-risk group
- a disease for which there is now NO ACCURATE TEST, and
- a disease for which there is NO KNOWN CURE for the chronic stage of infection
Please join us in our efforts to convince Rep. Pallone that the Lyme Bill MUST be scheduled for a hearing TODAY. Not in a year or two. Not based on the IDSA’s recommendations. TODAY.
ACTIONS TO TAKE:
Back to top of page
About the Lyme Bill HR 741
The Lyme & Tick-Borne Disease Prevention, Education & Research Act of 2007
- Bill number is HR 741 in the House, S 1708 in the Senate
- has 107 co-sponsors in the House (as of May 19, 2008)
- provides $100 million over 5 years for research, education and prevention
- For 9 years a similar bill has been before Congress and each bill has died without getting a hearing
More info about the Lyme Bill (Lyme Disease Association)
Complete bill text (Thomas.org) Click Bill # and type HR 741 or S 1708.
Congressman Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Chair of the House health subcommittee, has sole power to put the Lyme Bill on the schedule for a hearing. If not scheduled VERY soon, the bill will die.
NJ phone # (732) 571-1140 DC phone # (202) 225-4671
Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA), Chair of the Senate HELP committee, has sole power to put the Senate version of the Lyme Bill (S 1708) on the Senate schedule for a hearing. If not scheduled VERY soon, the bill will die.
Out of respect for Senator Kennedy's illness, we are asking people not to call his office, but rather to call the HELP committee.
HELP Committee Phone: (202) 224-4543 Back to top of page
About the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA)
The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) is a private group of medical specialists. It is quite wealthy and employs publicists and lobbyists. In October of 2006, IDSA published guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease which stated that chronic Lyme disease does not exist. They also claimed that most of the antibiotics and all of the supplements that patients find help them are actually ineffective.
Richard Blumenthal, the Attorney General of Connecticut, conducted an investigation and found the IDSA guilty of significant conflicts of interest that led them to exclude evidence that chronic Lyme disease exists. These guidelines are being used by insurance companies to deny coverage.
In May, 2008, IDSA agreed to a settlement of CT Attorney General’s investigation of its Lyme disease diagnosis & treatment guidelines
IDSA vehemently opposes the position of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS), the treating physicians whose Lyme guidelines are listed on the National Guidelines Clearinghouse website
IDSA’s Lyme guidelines and conflicts of interest are the subject of the new documentary about Lyme disease: UNDER OUR SKIN: an infectious film about microbes, money & medicine
Back to top of page
About the Connecticut Attorney General’s investigation of the IDSA
excerpt from Connecticut Attorney General’s Office Press Release, May 1, 2008
Attorney General's Investigation Reveals Flawed Lyme Disease Guideline Process, IDSA Agrees To Reassess Guidelines, Install Independent Arbiter
“Attorney General Richard Blumenthal today announced that his antitrust investigation has uncovered serious flaws in the Infectious Diseases Society of America's (IDSA) process for writing its 2006 Lyme disease guidelines and the IDSA has agreed to reassess them with the assistance of an outside arbiter.”
“The IDSA guidelines have sweeping and significant impacts on Lyme disease medical care. They are commonly applied by insurance companies in restricting coverage for long-term antibiotic treatment or other medical care and also strongly influence physician treatment decisions.”
“Insurance companies have denied coverage for long-term antibiotic treatment relying on these guidelines as justification. The guidelines are also widely cited for conclusions that chronic Lyme disease is nonexistent.”
"This agreement vindicates my investigation -- finding undisclosed financial interests and forcing a reassessment of IDSA guidelines," Blumenthal said. "My office uncovered undisclosed financial interests held by several of the most powerful IDSA panelists. The IDSA's guideline panel improperly ignored or minimized consideration of alternative medical opinion and evidence regarding chronic Lyme disease, potentially raising serious questions about whether the recommendations reflected all relevant science.”
For full text of Attorney General's statement - click here Back to top of page
About Lyme disease
For more information about Lyme disease, please visit the following websites
Download free brochures:
Back to top of page
|
