Virginia Lyme Disease Task Force To Hold Six Hearings In March
Purcellville, VA - Tuesday, February 22, 2011. Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell’s appointed Lyme Disease Task Force will conduct a total of six hearings in March in multiple regions of the state. The hearings are designed to gather important information about the effectiveness of diagnostic tools and treatments and to discuss ways to increase awareness of this devastating disease to aid Virginia residents and medical practitioners.
Five of the hearings will be public forums. Anyone may address Chairman Michael Farris and other Task Force members. The public testimony hearings are being held because of the growing concerns of Virginia residents about the spread and nature of Lyme disease. “Whole families are ill and are being harmed,” Michael Farris says. The five public testimony hearings are being held in Virginia Beach, Richmond, Harrisonburg, Roanoke, and Fairfax. (See below for more information.)
The additional hearing in March is the third in a series of expert witness hearings. It will be held on March 18, from 1-4 PM in the Perimeter Center outside of Richmond. It will cover the topic of Lyme and Children. Physicians, a psychologist, a school nurse, and three patients will testify about the impact of Lyme disease on children. The two previous hearings covered topics in diagnosis, treatment and prevention. The expert witness hearings are open to the public, but there is no opportunity for observers to comment. A fourth and final expert witness hearing is anticipated later in the spring on Lyme disease education.
More than nine hundred new cases of Lyme in Virginia were reported in 2009, and the CDC indicates ten times as many residents, particularly children, may be afflicted with this insidious disease.
All hearings are free and open to the public.
***Virginia residents are invited to speak (about 5-7 minutes per speaker, dependent on the number of participants) at the following hearings:
March 1 from 1-4 PM--Moot Court Room (in Robertson Hall, first floor), Regent University, 1000 Regent University Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23464
March 1 from 7-10 PM--The Perimeter Center in the Commonwealth Conference Center on the 2nd floor, Board Room 2. 9960 Mayland Drive, Henrico, VA 23233. Ample free parking is available.
March 15 from 1-4 PM--Festivals Highlands Room, Festival Conference and Student Center, James Madison University, 1301 Carrier Drive, Harrisonburg, VA 22807. General parking is available across the street in the D-3 lot. Lot security will allow parking there for attendees without a campus sticker. Campus map
March 15 from 7-10 PM--Stonewall Jackson Middle School, 1004 Montrose Ave SE, Roanoke, VA 24013
March 22 from 7-10 PM--Immanuel Bible Church (main auditorium), 6911 Braddock Road, Springfield, VA 22151
***The following hearing is an expert witness hearing. The hearing is free and open to the public, but there will be no opportunity for public comment:
March 18 from 1-4 PM--Hearing on Lyme and Children. The Perimeter Center in the Commonwealth Conference Center on the 2nd floor, Board Room 3. 9960 Mayland Drive, Henrico, VA 23233. Ample free parking is available.
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