Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that May was Lyme Project month, a time when the Lyme Disease Association of Australia raises awareness and funds to provide ongoing advocacy for people living with Lyme disease;

(2) recognises that Lyme disease can be debilitating and have a devastating impact on the lives of people living with it; and

(3) works with the Lyme disease Association of Australia to accept Lyme disease as a disease, undertake research, develop a national plan to collect statistics and develop treatments for people living with Lyme disease.

Lyme disease is an infectious disease caused by bacteria carried and spread by ticks. This is a disease that does not receive the acknowledgement or recognition in Australia that it should. The disease is becoming a global epidemic. It is currently affecting the lives of thousands of Australians, many within the electorate of Shortland. Lyme disease can be caused by a bite from an infectious tick, and there is a growing body of evidence—this adds to it—that it can also be transmitted by fleas and mosquitoes, transplacentally from the mother to the foetus, and through unprotected sex.

Lyme disease is a disease that is having an impact on many Australians, and it may mimic other diseases. Many Australians with Lyme disease spend years in the Australian medical system being misdiagnosed, while the pathogens infect their body and have a chance to propagate and cause damage. It is really important to be able to identify Lyme disease early and then deal with it. Australians are getting sick from tick bites, while local, federal and state governments are refusing to acknowledge the Lyme pathogens. Australian medical practitioners are not telling patients who were bitten by fleas in Australia that their symptoms could possibly be Lyme disease related. A recent study by Murdoch University announced in late June this year found Lyme pathogens in Australian ticks, which supports a growing number of historic studies that have found pathogens in Australia. Governments are denying that Lyme disease is in ticks in Australia, but this research has shown that it does exist. Lyme disease can be eradicated if the affected person takes antibiotics for a prescribed period as soon as possible after they are bitten. Not acknowledging and not treating Australians with Lyme disease is having an enormous impact.

One constituent wrote to me:

There is no use promoting a free hospital service—this is what a Lyme disease sufferer said—if they cannot get the support that they need. I know that this has been debated over a long period of time, but pathology tests must change and doctors must learn more about Lyme disease. I believe that we need to deal with Lyme disease and think of how we dealt with HIV and AIDS in the beginning—this could be similar to that. People are travelling overseas to get treatment because they are being misdiagnosed back home.

I would like to spend a little bit of time talking about an email I received from a constituent who was a public servant working for the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service. She contracted the disease through her work, and she was one of seven National Parks and Wildlife Service staff that have succumbed to the disease. One of her colleagues, Natalie Young, was medically retired from the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service because of the disability she suffered. She won her appeal with the Workers Compensation Commission, which recognised the fact that her illness was caused by a bite from a tick with Lyme disease. The constituent that wrote to me said that she counts herself lucky, because her treatment costs have been paid for by her employer and are being supported by her workplace.

I have to conclude by saying that I am disappointed that no-one from the other side is speaking on this—and I say that not in political terms. I have been contacted by Sharon Whiteman from the Lyme Disease Association of Australia. I know she has been contacting members on the other side of the House, and she has told me that the National Party is championing this for her. Why aren't they here speaking on the motion? (Time expired)

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