[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 118 (Monday, July 20, 2026)]
[House]
[Pages H4640-H4642]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REAUTHORIZING THE KAY HAGAN TICK ACT
Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 4348) to reauthorize the Kay Hagan Tick Act, and for other
purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 4348
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. REAUTHORIZATION OF PROGRAMS.
(a) National Strategy and Regional Centers of Excellence in
Vector-Borne Disease.--Section 317U of the Public Health
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247b-23) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b), in the matter preceding paragraph
(1), by striking ``the Tick-Borne Disease Working Group
established under section 2062 of the 21st Century Cures Act
(42 U.S.C. 284s) and other individuals, as appropriate'' and
inserting ``appropriate individuals'';
(2) in subsection (c)(4), by inserting ``, including by
increasing capacity to identify, report, prevent, and respond
to such diseases'' before the period at the end; and
(3) in subsection (f), by striking ``2021 through 2025''
and inserting ``2026 through 2030''.
(b) Enhanced Support To Assist Health Departments in
Addressing Vector-Borne Diseases.--Section 2822(c) of the
Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300hh-32(c)) is amended
by striking ``2021 through 2025'' and inserting ``2026
through 2030''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Kentucky.
General Leave
Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on the
legislation and to include extraneous material on H.R. 4348.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Kentucky?
There was no objection.
Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4348, led by my
colleagues, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman
from Texas (Mr. Doggett), which authorizes the national and regional
centers for excellence in vector-borne disease in the CDC's cooperative
agreements with health departments in high-risk areas for vector-borne
diseases.
Vectors like mosquitoes, ticks, and fleas carry dangerous diseases,
and vector-borne diseases can happen to anyone. They can have
debilitating effects. Preventing these diseases is a bipartisan issue
that I hope we all can support.
[[Page H4641]]
In addition to thanking the bill's sponsors for their leadership in
advancing the efforts to reduce the alarming threat of vector-borne
disease, I also thank the administration for their support of this bill
and for their commitment to the American people by combating Lyme
disease, which affects almost half a million Americans annually.
I encourage my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4348, the Kay Hagan Tick Act,
sponsored by my colleagues Chris Smith of New Jersey and Lloyd Doggett
of Texas. I understand that Mr. Kean from New Jersey is also a sponsor.
This bill reauthorizes the national strategy and regional centers of
excellence in vector-borne diseases. Tick-borne diseases, including
Lyme disease, have rapidly increased over the last decades. The Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that nearly a half million
people may, in fact, be diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease every
year in the United States. That is a dramatic increase from 30,000
annual cases just two decades ago.
{time} 1500
H.R. 4348 would expand research, improve testing, and coordinate
vector-borne disease efforts across the Federal Government. The bill
would also reauthorize funding for Regional Centers of Excellence for
surveillance, prevention, and response to vector-borne diseases and
reauthorize grants to State health departments to support vector-borne
disease infrastructure.
Tick and vector-borne disease have rapidly increased, Mr. Speaker,
particularly in the northeastern part of our country. I encourage all
of my colleagues to honor the legacy of Senator Kay Hagan, who died of
complications from a tick-borne disease, by voting ``yes'' on H.R.
4348.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey
(Mr. Smith).
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Guthrie for
his personal and extraordinarily strong support of H.R. 4348, and his
staff, director Megan Jackson, Health Subcommittee staff Jay Gulshen
and Emma Schultheis. I also thank my good friend, Frank Pallone, our
Health Subcommittee Chair Morgan Griffith, Ranking Member Diana
DeGette, as well as the original sponsors, Lloyd Doggett, Paul Tonko,
and Tom Kean.
Mr. Speaker, at a May 29th press conference in New Hampshire, HHS
Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who has been a tremendous leader in
the war on Lyme disease, announced a ``sweeping plan to combat Lyme
disease and to advance treatment.''
Secretary Kennedy said: ``Millions of Americans battling Lyme disease
and other tick-borne illnesses have spent years searching for answers,
treatment, and support. Today, the Trump administration is launching
one of the most ambitious Federal efforts ever to combat Lyme disease
by accelerating research, expanding innovation, and improving care for
patients and families. We are going after this disease at its source,
driving faster diagnostics and new prevention strategies, and
delivering the urgency and action Americans deserve.''
He said: ``The initiative will develop and deploy practical
strategies to target and eliminate ticks on wildlife before they can
spread diseases to humans.'' That has been lacking for decades. They
are going after the ticks themselves.
``Lyme disease,'' Mr. Speaker, he said: ``remains one of the Nation's
fastest growing vector-borne health threats. More than 476,000
Americans are diagnosed with Lyme disease each year, and recent data
show emergency room visits for tick bites reached their highest
springtime level in nearly a decade.''
Secretary Kennedy also announced new actions to combat Alpha-gal
syndrome, a tick-associated condition that can trigger potentially
serious allergic reactions to red meat and other products. The CDC
estimates nearly 500,000 Americans are living with Alpha-gal syndrome,
though emerging evidence suggests the true number may be significantly
higher.
Mr. Speaker, as my colleagues know, ticks not only transmit Lyme
disease but other deadly and debilitating illnesses, such as Alpha-gal,
babesiosis, Powassan disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and
anaplasmosis. Vector-borne diseases are now endemic in regions of the
country where they have not historically been present.
Disease-laden ticks are now found in all 48 contiguous States. The
problem is exploding. It is not abating. It is, therefore, critical
that Congress take immediate action to support and further sustain
ongoing efforts to combat these insidious diseases that kill and
disable.
I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4348, a 5-year reauthorization
of the Kay Hagan Tick Act, a law that expires on September 30th. My
colleagues will recall that our distinguished colleague, North Carolina
Senator Kay Hagan, suffered a tick bite and died in 2019 from
encephalitis caused by the Powassan virus. The current law and
reauthorization is named in her honor.
The original Kay Hagan Tick Act, which I led in 2019 here in the
House and Susan Collins led it in the Senate, became part of the
appropriations act in 2020. The act created, among other things, a
whole-of-government national strategy to combat Lyme and other tick-
borne diseases with special focus on surveillance, diagnosis,
treatment, education, and prevention.
I would note parenthetically that I have been working on Lyme disease
since 1992, when Pat Smith--no relation--of Wall Township, who actually
formed the Lyme Disease Association of America, came up to me in Wall
Township and said: What are you doing about Lyme? I said: Nothing. We
had lunch. I have been working on it ever since.
I introduced my first comprehensive bill--one of many, at times we
had over 100 cosponsors--called the Lyme Disease Initiative Act of
1998, almost 30 years ago. We could not move it. It was blocked over
and over again. There were some people in HHS and at CDC and elsewhere
who were saying, just take 2 weeks of doxycycline and you are cured.
When you have chronic Lyme, it takes a very serious effort, very
often with a Lyme literate doctor, in order to overcome and put that
disease into remission.
In February 2024, I remind my colleagues, HHS released the National
Public Health Strategy to prevent and control vector-borne diseases. It
is an excellent strategy. We are acting on that now as well. It also
supports the whole-of-government assault on Lyme.
It authorizes $50 million over 5 years for Regional Centers of
Excellence. It also, as we did in the original law, authorizes $100
million over 5 years to tangibly assist States' public health
departments and other local entities to support the development and
implementation of evidence-based research interventions and treatment
with respect to the Lyme disease epidemic.
I urge my colleagues to support it.
Mr. Speaker, in February, 2024, HHS released the National Public
Health Strategy to Prevent and Control Vector-borne Diseases in People
with mutually reinforcing goals to:
Better understand when, where, and how people are exposed to and get
sick or die from VBDs.
Develop, evaluate, and improve tools, methods, and guidance to
diagnose VBDs and their pathogens.
Develop, evaluate, and improve tools, methods, and guidance to
prevent and control VBDs.
Develop and assess drugs and treatment strategies for VBDs.
Disseminate and implement public health tools, programs, and
collaborations to prevent, detect, diagnose, and respond to VBD
threats.
H.R. 4348, supports this whole of government assault on Lyme and
other vector borne diseases.
H.R. 4348 again authorizes $50 million over five years for the
regional centers of excellence, which coordinate with academia and
local public health agencies to conduct research on Lyme in their areas
and train public health professionals to identify and treat Lyme.
Finally, H.R. 434--again as we did in the original law--authorizes
cooperative agreement funding for states and localities--$100 million
over five years--to tangibly assist state public health departments and
other local entities to support the development and implementation of
evidence-based research, interventions, and treatment with respect to--
[[Page H4642]]
educating and informing the public, based on evidence-based public
health research and data, about Lyme Disease and other vector-borne
diseases;
supporting early detection and diagnosis;
supporting prevention;
improving treatment; and
supporting care planning and management for individuals with Lyme
disease and other tick- and vector-borne diseases.
I thank the Chairman Brett Guthrie for his personal and
extraordinarily strong support of H.R. 4348, as well as his Staff
Director Megan Jackson and Health Subcommittee staff Jay Gulshen and
Emma Schultheis.
Special thanks to Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Health Subcommittee
Chair Morgan Griffith and Ranking Member Diana DeGette as well as
original cosponsors Lloyd Doggett, Paul Tonko, and Tom Kean.
Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Tonko).
Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Kay Hagan
Tick Act legislation that I am leading along with my colleagues,
Representatives Chris Smith, Lloyd Doggett, and Tom Kean.
The Kay Hagan Tick Act would reauthorize key programs at the CDC that
fund both research and support for local public health agencies to
address tick-borne diseases such as Lyme disease.
Tick-borne diseases are a large and growing problem in New York, with
more than 18,000 cases of Lyme disease reported in New York State in
2024. Lyme can cause serious health consequences, and for some, long-
term complications persist after treatment.
With a warming climate, tick populations and ranges are on the rise,
leading to fears that tick-borne diseases will continue to increase in
frequency in the years to come. Already, warning signs are blaring that
2026 could be the worst year for tick exposures since 2017, based on
CDC tracking data.
In this backdrop, research investments and public health resources
are more vital than ever. That is what the Kay Hagan Tick Act will
deliver.
I am proud to have worked on this commonsense bipartisan bill, and I
would urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, again, I would urge my colleagues to
support this bill on a bipartisan basis, and I yield back the balance
of my time.
Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I encourage a ``yes'' vote on this bill,
and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Newhouse). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4348.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________