U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: HHS Awards Funding to Improve Tick Control and Prevent Lyme Disease, Alpha-gal Syndrome and Other Tickborne Illnesses

“HHS Awards Funding to Improve Tick Control and Prevent Lyme Disease, Alpha-gal Syndrome and Other Tickborne Illnesses” - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, September 2026

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), today announced an ambitious new research initiative to address how the nation combats ticks and tickborne diseases, including Lyme disease and alpha-gal syndrome. CDC and NIH awarded a total of nearly $3 million to two of CDC’s Centers of Excellence (COEs) in Vector-Borne Diseases to research innovative approaches for reducing tick populations, which, in turn, could lower people's encounters with ticks and the risk of tickborne disease.