Comptroller General Investigation of Ticks/Vectors & Biowarfare Passes House

The Lyme Disease Association announces that the House voted this week to pass a number of amendments to the NDAA, National Defense Authorization Act, including a Congressman Chris Smith amendment —The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a review of whether the Department of Defense experimented with ticks, other insects, airborne releases of tick-borne bacteria, viruses, pathogens, or any other tick-borne agents regarding use as a biological weapon between the years of 1950 and 1977.  

There is information in various publications that such activities did occur, especially in the book “Bitten” by Kris Newby– a science writer at Stanford University—a book, which explores the evidence through actual government documents and interviews with some researchers who were involved that document such experiments.

The Lyme Disease Association Inc. has worked with Congressman Smith (NJ-04) on this legislative issue since 2019, with his introduction of a similar amendment which passed the House and in 2020 when this current version of the amendment was first passed by the House.

Said LDA President Pat Smith, former 4 year member of the HHS Tick-Borne Disease Advisory Committee: “With 476,000 people being diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease, in the US annually, patients and the public are entitled to know the truth about what past government research may reveal not only about the documented tick releases along the Atlantic bird flyway but also about research on the mysterious ‘Swiss agent’ which Dr. Willy Burgdorfer identified as a new Rickettsia strain in his work for the US Government– at Rocky Mountain Labs and in Switzerland.  The book indicates there is speculation that this pathogen, if crossed with Borrelia, might well complicate treatment and thus be a candidate for biowarfare. There is the possibility that any uncovered information could lead to facts which could shed light on the current epidemic of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases (TBD) and perhaps lead to cures. We thank Congressmen Smith for his continued push to make the truth known and the US House of Representatives for their vote to approve the amendment. ”

Some things author Newby revealed for the first time in the book were: that ticks were developed and deployed as stealth biological weapons during the Cold War, and that Willy Burgdorfer, the scientist the Lyme bacteria, Borrelia burgdorferi, was named after, was at the center of this program. According to Newby, specific revelations she makes in book include:

• A 1962 pilot study where infected ticks were dropped on Cuba sugar workers.
• Releases of hundreds of thousands of radioactive, aggressive Lone Star ticks on the Atlantic coastal bird flyway.
• Omissions of other microbes transmitted with Lyme-carrying ticks during the original outbreak (“Swiss Agent”).
• Documentation of military studies where live disease-causing bacteria, some which can be spread by ticks, were sprayed from planes, boats and vehicles on the unsuspecting American public.

The Lyme Disease Association (LDA) encourages Lyme advocates, patients, and the public across the country to contact both of their US Senators to champion and support this amendment. After 45 years of Lyme disease, the truth must be uncovered.

Other Information

Amendment text

Congressional Record

Congressman Smith press release

House Armed Services Committee

Pat Smith’s Facebook Quote:

On behalf of Pat Smith, Lyme Disease Association’s President, I am sharing this post at her request.   Annie Mennella, LDA FB Moderator. 9/25/21

The Lyme Disease Association (LDA) has worked with Congressman Smith for 30 years trying to get answers on Lyme disease. The time is now ripe for this investigation to move forward and uncover Lyme’s murky origins, just as COVID’s origins are being examined. If an investigation is not done, we may never have any answers–answers which could even produce information that could help in determining treatments for TBDs or stopping their spread.

It is good news for the public and patients that In our fractured political environment, out of the 860 amendments offered for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), only 476 were made in order, and this one was included in the even smaller number actually passed. This shows a huge interest by government to explore this issue of Lyme and tick-borne diseases.  Also, an amendment for a government investigation passed twice before in the House in 2019 and 2020.   This time we all need to help persuade the Senate to keep this amendment when both Houses go to the conference committee to iron out Senate and House bill differences.