PRINTER'S NO. 981
No. 878 Session of 1999
INTRODUCED BY GREENLEAF, WAUGH, COSTA, SCHWARTZ, BOSCOLA, FUMO,
KASUNIC, MUSTO, RHOADES AND TILGHMAN, APRIL 28, 1999
REFERRED TO PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE, APRIL 28, 1999
AN ACT
1 Providing for Lyme disease education, prevention and treatment;
2 and making appropriations.
3 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
4 hereby enacts as follows:
5 Section 1. Short title.
6 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Lyme Disease
7 Education, Prevention and Treatment Act.
8 Section 2. Purpose.
9 The General Assembly finds that Lyme disease poses a serious
10 threat to the health and welfare of the people of this
11 Commonwealth. It is the intent of this act to provide the public
12 with information and education to create greater public
13 awareness of the dangers of and measures available to prevent
14 Lyme disease. It is also the intent of this act to provide
15 education to health care providers regarding the prevention,
16 diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease.
17 Section 3. Reporting.
1 Every physician who treats or examines any person who is
2 suffering from or who is suspected of having Lyme disease shall
3 make a prompt report of the disease to the local board of health
4 or to the Department of Health.
5 Section 4. Powers and duties.
6 (a) Department of Health.--The Department of Health shall
7 have the following powers and duties:
8 (1) Promulgate regulations to enforce the requirements
9 of this act.
10 (2) Develop a program of general public information and
11 education regarding Lyme disease.
12 (3) Develop a program to educate health care providers
13 to prevent, diagnose and treat Lyme disease.
14 (4) Cooperate with the Pennsylvania Game Commission to
15 disseminate the information required under paragraph (2) to
16 licensees of the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the general
17 public.
18 (5) Cooperate with the Department of Conservation and
19 Natural Resources to disseminate the information required
20 under paragraph (2) to the general public and visitors of
21 State parks and lands.
22 (6) Cooperate with the professional associations of
23 health care providers to provide the education program for
24 professionals required under paragraph (3).
25 Section 5. Appropriations.
26 The sum of $125,000, or as much thereof as may be necessary,
27 is hereby appropriated to the Department of Health for the
28 development of the program of public information and education
29 provided for in this act, with no more than $25,000 of the
30 amount to be used to coordinate educational programs with the
19990S0878B0981 - 2 -
1 Pennsylvania Game Commission, the Department of Conservation and
2 Natural Resources and health care provider professional
3 associations.
4 Section 6. Effective date.
5 This act shall take effect immediately.
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