Lyme disease is far more common than most public health officials realized. Until this week, the CDC estimated that between 20,000 and 30,000 Americans were infected with the bacteria that causes Lyme disease each year. Now, the CDC has drastically revised its estimate.
Acknowledging that many doctors underreport cases of Lyme, the agency now calculates that approximately 300,000 Americans are diagnosed with the disease annually. Dr. Paul Mead, chief of epidemiology and surveillance for the CDC’s Lyme disease program stated that Lyme disease is now recognized as a tremendous public health problem.
There is more information on the CDC’s announcement and a link to the map. You can also learn much more about Lyme and other tick-borne diseases by listening to our interviews with the experts.
