MADISON, Wis. (AP) - The Wisconsin Senate is preparing to approve a package of bills designed to combat Lyme disease.
The average number of Lyme disease cases in Wisconsin has more than doubled over the last decade. According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Wisconsin had the fourth-highest number of confirmed cases among all 50 states in 2017 at 1,794 incidents.
The bills up for state Senate approval Tuesday would do a number of things.
They would require the Department of Natural Resources to post Lyme disease warnings on state land and sell insect repellent at state parks and forests.
The DNR would also have to include information on Lyme disease in state park brochures and run an annual Lyme disease public awareness campaign. The measures also would create a tick-borne disease study committee.