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Bill > SB329
PA SB329
PA SB329Providing for continuing education in Lyme disease and related tick-borne diseases for health care professionals.
summary
Introduced
02/28/2025
02/28/2025
In Committee
02/28/2025
02/28/2025
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead
Introduced Session
2025-2026 Regular Session
Bill Summary
Providing for continuing education in Lyme disease and related tick-borne diseases for health care professionals. The General Assembly finds and declares as follows: (1) In 2024, the Department of Health recorded 15,793 lab-confirmed cases of Lyme disease in this Commonwealth. (2) Research from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that these numbers are undercounted by a factor of 10, meaning as many as 157,000 cases of Lyme disease may have occurred in this Commonwealth in 2024. (3) The Department of Environmental Protection published a study in 2015 that confirmed a high risk of Lyme disease in every county of this Commonwealth and found all 67 counties had the blacklegged tick. (4) The early clinical diagnosis and appropriate treatment of these tick-borne disorders and diseases can greatly reduce the risks of continued, diverse and chronic symptoms that can affect every system and organ of the human body and often every aspect of an individual's life. (5) Residents of this Commonwealth should be aware of early disseminated and persistent symptoms and should know that a negative Lyme test cannot rule out Lyme disease. (6) Scientific understanding of these complex tick-borne illnesses is expected to evolve rapidly in the next decade, including diagnosis and treatment options. (7) The high burden of tick-borne diseases in this Commonwealth requires an urgent and ongoing response. Health care practitioner education is a specific strategy recommended.
AI Summary
This bill requires physicians, physician assistants, and nurses to complete two hours of continuing education focused on Lyme disease and related tick-borne diseases as part of their license renewal process. The bill defines Lyme disease as infections caused by various strains of Borrelia bacteria, including those recognized by the CDC, and related tick-borne diseases as infections like babesiosis, anaplasmosis, and ehrlichiosis. When developing the continuing education curriculum, licensing boards must seek input from experts, including universities researching these diseases, and consider guidelines from organizations like the CDC, NIH, and various infectious disease societies. The education must cover current research on local tick data, patient symptom profiles, diagnostic options, treatment approaches, and prevention strategies. Importantly, the bill explicitly states that it does not provide specific treatment recommendations for these diseases. The licensing boards are required to establish and implement these new continuing education requirements within 18 months of the act's effective date, with the goal of improving healthcare professionals' understanding of these increasingly prevalent and complex illnesses.
Committee Categories
Labor and Employment
Sponsors (9)
Michele Brooks (R)*,
Maria Collett (D),
Carolyn Comitta (D),
Jay Costa (D),
Marty Flynn (D),
John Kane (D),
Wayne Langerholc (R),
Devlin Robinson (R),
Judy Ward (R),
Last Action
Referred to Consumer Protection & Professional Licensure (on 02/28/2025)
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