More than 275 advocates from around the United States have already signed up to participate in this month’s virtual Lyme Fly-in, scheduled for February 21-22.

But there’s room for more, especially from the following under-represented states:

Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Wisconsin, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

Registration deadline is February 10. If you want to participate in this important Lyme advocacy event, click here.

The Fly-In is sponsored by the Center for Lyme Action (CLA), an organization that works to increase federal funding for Lyme disease and related issues.

It’s a chance for Lyme advocates anywhere in the US to tell their elected representatives why increased federal funding for Lyme disease is desperately needed. And ask for their support in the upcoming appropriations process.

The CLA will set up a video appointment for you and other advocates in your area to meet with the Washington DC offices of your Congressional representatives. (So you don’t have to leave your house. And as a bonus, you’ll get to connect online with other advocates from your region.)

Don’t worry that you won’t know what to say. The CLA will offer video training to all participants, so you’ll know what to ask for and why.

Funding has tripled

“Advocacy works!” says CLA co-founder Bonnie Crater. “Over the last three years, advocates have nearly tripled federal funding for Lyme and other tick-borne diseases.”

Whether you have Lyme disease yourself or if you love someone who does, YOU’RE the perfect person to tell your elected representatives how great the need is. If you are able to do so, I hope you’ll sign up today.

TOUCHED BY LYME is written by Dorothy Kupcha Leland, President of LymeDisease.org. She is co-author of When Your Child Has Lyme Disease: A Parent’s Survival Guide. Contact her at dleland@lymedisease.org.

Here are some social media posts from previous events:

2022

Lucia Sayre, California, 2022

Kristina Bauer, Texas, 2022

2021