Maine Lyme Bill 416-597 Signed Into Law

Thanks largely to the efforts of MaineLyme, a non –profit, and primary sponsor Representative Sheryl Briggs, on June 24, 2013, Main Governor LePage signed the Lyme bills into law (Chapter 340). In April, the LDA wrote in support of the bills and requested inclusion as a resource on the Maine website. The law now includes the Lyme Disease Association website as a resource. Some of law text below:

1. Lyme disease may be difficult to diagnose and treat;
2. Some patients seem not to respond to the usual antibiotics used for treating Lyme
disease and seem to have post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome. There are some
doctors who believe that longer doses of antibiotics may sometimes be helpful. Some
patients believe that they have benefited from extended treatments of antibiotics;
3. Antibiotics can be lifesaving medications but can have serious side effects, such as
the development of drug-resistant organisms. A patient who contracts an infection from a
drug-resistant organism may never fully recover;
4. A negative result for a Lyme disease test does not necessarily mean that Lyme
disease is not present and if symptoms continue, the patient should contact a health care
provider and inquire about the appropriateness of retesting or additional treatment; and
5. Information on treatment alternatives for treating Lyme disease is available
through Internet websites of organizations, including, but not limited to, MaineLyme,
Lyme Disease Association, the Mayo Clinic, the National Institutes of Health and
WebMD.

Click here for bill text

Click here for LDA letter to Maine legislators

(L to R) Rep. Sanderson, Bill Whitten (lobbyist and patient) Sally Jordan 12 yr, Lisa Jordan, Susan Holmes, Governor LePage, Happy Dickey RN, Rep. Sheryl Briggs (original Sponsor) Diane Farnum, Rhonda Buker, (both initiators of the bill), Rep. and Rep. Johnson (patient). Dr. Beatrice Szantyr is missing from this picture but was a huge factor in bill’s success. Photo Courtesy MaineLyme.org.