Lyme disease case counts in the US rose by almost 70% in 2022 due to a change in how it's reported
Lyme disease cases in the United States jumped nearly 70% in 2022
By MIKE STOBBE
Published - Feb 15, 2024, 02:34 PM ET
Last Updated - Feb 15, 2024, 02:34 PM EST
NEW YORK (AP) — Lyme disease cases in the U.S. jumped nearly 70% in 2022, which health officials say is not due to a major increase of new infections but instead a change in reporting requirements.
Reported cases surpassed 62,000 in 2022, after averaging about 37,000 a year from 2017 through 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report released Thursday. Numbers for 2023 will be released later this year.
Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne infection in the U.S., occurring mostly in the Northeast, Midwest and mid-Atlantic states.
An estimated 476,000 Americans are diagnosed with it each year, but only a fraction are officially reported.
