AUGUSTA — Maine Gov. Paul LePage has signed a bill aimed at promoting Lyme disease awareness.

The bill signed Tuesday requires the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention to include certain information on its website about Lyme disease diagnosis and treatment.

Among other things, the website must say that a negative result for a Lyme disease test doesn’t necessarily mean Lyme disease isn’t present. The International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society says false-negatives for Lyme disease occur 54 percent of the time.

The bill also mandates that patients get full results when tested.

The bacterial infection is carried by the deer tick. It can be prevented by wearing protective clothing, using insect repellent, performing daily tick checks and using caution in tick habitats.
 


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