HHS Just Made the Largest Federal Commitment to Lyme Disease in History

More than 476,000 Americans are diagnosed with Lyme disease every year. Many more go undiagnosed. ER visits for tick bites just hit their highest springtime level in nearly a decade.

Washington finally noticed.

On May 29, HHS Secretary RFK Jr. announced a sweeping federal push against Lyme disease & tick-borne illness — one of the most significant in the department’s history. He delivered the news in New Hampshire, one of the hardest-hit states in the country.

Here’s what’s on the table:

• A multi-million-dollar CDC-led tick control pilot program targeting ticks on wildlife before they reach humans.
• Three new LymeX Innovation Challenges — up to $2.5M in prize funding — covering patient education, drug repurposing, & an AI sprint with a $1M grand prize for tools that help patients get faster answers.
• A new $10M Diagnostics Prize to accelerate next-gen Lyme testing.
• NIH is investing $50M/yr in Lyme research & $122M/yr in broader tick-borne disease research.
• A new public-private collaboration with ILADS — so patients can finally find experienced providers through hhs.gov/lyme.

The stated goal: reduce Lyme cases 25% by 2035.

For patients who’ve spent years being dismissed, gaslit, or undertreated — this level of federal acknowledgment matters. Whether the follow-through matches the announcement is the real question.