Kay Hagan Tick Reauthorization Act becomes law

The Kay Hagan Tick Reauthorization Act was signed into law Oct. 1, extending federal programs on Lyme and other tickborne diseases through fiscal 2030. The bipartisan measure preserves national strategy, research centers and CDC grants that support state and local public health efforts.

Why it matters: - The law extends federal efforts to prevent, detect and respond to Lyme disease and other tickborne illnesses through Fiscal Year 2030. - It keeps in place the main federal tools that support research, surveillance, diagnosis and public health coordination. - The reauthorization comes after years of advocacy and signals continued bipartisan backing for tickborne disease policy.

What happened: - President Donald Trump signed the Kay Hagan Tick Reauthorization Act into law on Oct. 1, 2026. - The bill, S. 2398, passed the U.S. Senate unanimously in August and the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously in September. - Center for Lyme Action celebrated the signing as a major win for the Lyme and tickborne disease community.

The details: - The law reauthorizes the National Public Health Strategy to Prevent and Control Vector-Borne Diseases in People and directs the Department of Health and Human Services to keep implementing and updating it. - The measure extends Regional Centers of Excellence in Vector-Borne Diseases through FY2030. - The law also renews CDC grants for state and local health departments. - Those grants support surveillance, data collection and analysis, early detection and diagnosis, treatment efforts and public awareness. - The original Kay Hagan Tick Act was signed into law in 2019 and was named for former Sen. Kay Hagan of North Carolina. - Hagan died in 2019 after complications from the tickborne Powassan virus. - Congressional sponsors said reporting of tick-surveillance data rose from six health departments to 44 after implementation of the original law. - Center for Lyme Action said its grassroots network includes advocates in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. - The organization said those advocates met with lawmakers, joined advocacy days and shared personal stories to push for reauthorization. - Meghan Bradshaw, executive director of Center for Lyme Action, called the signing the result of years of work by patients, families, researchers, public health professionals, advocates and bipartisan champions in Congress. - Bradshaw also said every email, phone call, congressional meeting and advocacy action mattered.

Between the lines: - The unanimous votes in both chambers suggest tickborne disease policy still has unusually broad bipartisan support. - The reauthorization preserves the federal framework, but it does not by itself guarantee larger research or public health budgets. - Center for Lyme Action is positioning the win as a platform for a broader push on funding and implementation.

What's next: - Center for Lyme Action said it will keep pressing Congress and federal agencies for more investment in research, prevention, diagnostics, therapeutics, surveillance and public health infrastructure. - The organization plans to work with the research community, industry and patient advocacy groups to push implementation and new funding. - Bradshaw said reauthorization is the foundation for the next phase of work, not the finish line.

The bottom line: - The law locks in federal tickborne disease programs through 2030, but advocates say the next test is whether Washington pairs that policy framework with sustained funding and execution.