N.Y. Public Health Law § 207-a: Tick-borne diseases and blood-borne pathogen impact study

§ 207-a. Tick-borne diseases and blood-borne pathogen impact study. 1.

The department, in conjunction with the commissioner of mental health,

shall issue a report examining the mental health impacts of tick-borne

diseases and blood-borne pathogens on mental illness rates in endemic

areas of the state. Such report shall include but not be limited to:

(a) Considerations of how Lyme, tick-borne illnesses, and other

blood-borne pathogens or vector-borne diseases may have correlations

with mental illness in infected individuals;

(b) Populations at-risk including those individuals with occupations

outdoors and/or increased exposure to vectors;

(c) Diagnostic indicators of mental illness that can be used as

guidance for healthcare providers and mental health practitioners;

(d) Historical considerations of infection rates and mental illness

indicators that may have gone undiagnosed or misdiagnosed in endemic

areas; and

(e) Recommendations for intervention and coordinated care for

individuals who exhibit mental illness symptoms as well as those who

have both physical and mental health indicators.

2. Such report shall be submitted to the temporary president of the

senate and the speaker of the assembly no later than October first, two

thousand twenty-two. The department and the commissioner of mental

health may engage stakeholders in the compilation of the report,

including but not limited to, medical research institutions, health care

practitioners, mental health providers, county and local government, and

advocates.