Referred to: The Public Health and Social Services Committee (Chairman Lopez and

Legislators Allen, Belfiglio, Heppner, and Roberts), and The Ways and Means

Committee (Chairman Gerentine and Legislators Allen, Bartels, Belfiglio, Briggs,

Maio, and Maloney)

Deputy Chairman of the Public Health and Social Services Committee, Chris Allen,

offers the following:

WHEREAS, Lyme disease is a tick-born bacterial infection that is spread

through the bite of deer ticks which are prevalent throughout Ulster County; and

WHEREAS, Lyme disease is responsible for numerous symptoms in its

sufferers including but not limited to: fatigue, joint pain, muscle pain, muscle

weakness, stiff neck, arthritis and other muscular/skeletal problems, brain fog, mental

confusion and other neurological problems, bell’s palsy, heart infections, skin rashes

and audio logical and ocular disturbances; and

WHEREAS, Lyme disease sufferers often experience numerous debilitating

symptoms for months and years after conventional broad spectrum-based anti-biotic

treatments have ended which require sufferers to seek additional medical advice and

treatment for months and years after their initial diagnoses; and

WHEREAS, the United States Center for Disease Control, CDC, has

documented that confirmed Lyme disease cases annually exceed 22,000-25,000 and

that another 10,000-12,000 cases are likely while other sources outside the CDC have

estimated that tens of thousands of additional cases of Lyme disease go unreported

on an annual basis; and

WHEREAS, Westchester County, Dutchess County, Putnam County and

Ulster County in Upstate New York have historically had the highest frequency of

reported Lyme disease cases throughout the entire United States; and

WHEREAS, prevention against an initial tick bite is viewed to be an effective

method of preventing Lyme disease transmission through a methodology of selfmonitoring for ticks and rolling up socks over pants legs when in wooded areas or

areas where ticks are known to be present; and

WHEREAS, tick removal kits are viewed to be a potential detractor of Lyme

disease transmission by removing ticks before they can transmit the disease through

prolonged feeding off of a human host; and 

WHEREAS, there are hundreds of miles of hiking trails throughout Ulster

County, and with the expansion of the rail trail throughout Ulster County, thousands

of hikers use these trails on an annual basis; and

WHEREAS, the Ulster County Charter grants the authority to the

Commissioner of Health to administer specific policies that address the dangers that

all diseases (including Lyme disease) pose to residents and tourists who frequent

Ulster County; and

WHEREAS, the Public Health and Social Services Committee within the

Ulster County Legislature works in conjunction with the Commissioner of Health

and the County Executive’s Office to oversee and address the dangers that all

diseases (including Lyme disease) may pose on Ulster County residents and those

who frequent Ulster County as tourists; and

WHEREAS, tick removal kits have been made available at the Office of the

Department of Health and prevention-based awareness signs have been posted

throughout various Government locations about rolling up pants legs and selfmonitoring for the presence of ticks after hiking or being in wooded area or places

where ticks are known to frequent; and

WHEREAS, it is within the duties and responsibilities of the Public Health

and Social Services Committee to set policy to provide additional tick removal kits

and awareness-based signs and pamphlets about the dangers of Lyme disease and

other tick borne illnesses; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, that it is the policy of the County of Ulster to make readily

available a sufficient number, as determined by the Commissioner of Health, of tick

removal kits, signs about self-monitoring for ticks and rolling up pants legs while in

wooded areas or areas where ticks are known to frequent, and pamphlets about Lyme

disease and other tick borne illnesses at the Department of Health, the County Office

Building and at informational booths along the rail trail and other hiking and

recreational areas within Ulster County,

and moves its adoption. 

ADOPTED BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE:

AYES: 18 NOES: 0

(Absent: Legislators Belfiglio, Briggs, Litts,

Loughran, and Maloney)

Passed Committee: Public Health and Social Services as amended on September 7,

2016

Passed Committee: Ways and Means as amended on September 13, 2016

FINANCIAL IMPACT:

TBD- 2017 APPROPRIATION DOLLARS

STATE OF NEW YORK

 ss:

COUNTY OF ULSTER

I, the undersigned Clerk of the Legislature of the County of Ulster, hereby certify that the foregoing resolution is

the original resolution adopted by the Ulster County Legislature on the 20th Day of September in the year Two Thousand

and Sixteen, and said resolution shall remain on file in the office of said clerk.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and seal of the County of Ulster this 21st Day of

September in the year Two Thousand and Sixteen.

|s| Victoria A. Fabella

Victoria A. Fabella, Clerk

Ulster County Legislature

Submitted to the County Executive this Approved by the County Executive this

21st Day of September, 2016. 29th Day of September, 2016.

|s| Victoria A. Fabella |s| Michael P. Hein

Victoria A. Fabella, Clerk Michael P. Hein, County Executive

Ulster County Legislature