Verbatim report of proceedings

Thursday, 15 November 2018 - Strasbourg

Lyme disease (Borreliosis) (debate)

  Marian Harkin (ALDE). – Mr President, and apologies, I’m just arriving, we were at a vote in the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs but I thank you for this one minute. Commissioner, my office has been listening to your responses and, I have to say, I’m not fully satisfied with your response on the need for a proper, harmonised approach to diagnosis. The truth is that many people who have Lyme disease are undiagnosed and this is a double whammy for people who suffer from this most debilitating disease.

I know in Ireland many patients have to go abroad so that they can be properly tested. It’s very expensive for them, many of them have suffered for many years and they cannot get a diagnosis in Ireland. Specialists and doctors will tell them: clinically, the results say you’re fine. They go abroad and they get a diagnosis of Lyme disease. I believe that the EU can act in a much stronger way by strongly encouraging a harmonised, accurate test for Lyme disease so that all EU citizens can have access to timely and accurate diagnosis.