Stamp Out Lyme Disease Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Stamp Out Lyme Disease Act uses a semipostal stamp to raise supplemental research funds for Lyme disease and related tick-borne illnesses. Congress cites CDC estimates of 476,000 diagnosed and treated Lyme disease cases annually, diagnostic difficulty, persistent symptoms in 10 to 20 percent of patients, and up to $1,300,000,000 in annual health system costs. USPS must issue a Lyme Disease Research Semipostal Stamp under title 39 semipostal rules. Net amounts becoming available from stamp sales must be transferred at least twice a year to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for Lyme and tick-borne illness research, and those amounts cannot be used to reduce ordinary appropriations or other federal funding for NIAID. The stamp must be available to the public for at least six years, beginning no later than 12 months after enactment.
Who Benefits and How
Lyme disease patients benefit from a dedicated public stamp mechanism that raises additional money for research. Tick-borne illness researchers benefit because sale proceeds flow to NIAID for Lyme and related illness research. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases programs benefit from twice-yearly transfers that cannot offset regular appropriations. Public health advocates benefit from a visible six-year stamp campaign tied to Lyme disease awareness and research funding.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Postal Service stamp program staff must issue and sell the semipostal stamp for at least six years. NIAID grant administrators must receive and use transferred stamp proceeds for the research purpose. Stamp purchasers pay the semipostal surcharge that generates research funds. USPS accounting staff must calculate and transfer net amounts at least twice each year.
Key Provisions
- Requires USPS to issue a Lyme Disease Research Semipostal Stamp.
- Transfers net semipostal proceeds to NIAID at least twice a year for Lyme and tick-borne illness research.
- Bars counting stamp proceeds against regular NIAID appropriations or federal funding.
- Requires the stamp to be available for at least six years beginning within 12 months after enactment.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Requires USPS to issue a Lyme Disease Research Semipostal Stamp for at least six years and transfer sale proceeds to NIAID for Lyme and tick-borne illness research.
Key Policy Areas
Public Health, Postal Service, Research
Primary Purpose
Requires USPS to issue a Lyme Disease Research Semipostal Stamp for at least six years and transfer sale proceeds to NIAID for Lyme and tick-borne illness research.
Policy Domains
Resolution provisions
Identified Gains
- Lyme disease patients
- Tick-borne illness researchers
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases programs
- Public health advocates
Identified Costs
- Postal Service stamp program staff
- NIAID grant administrators
- Stamp purchasers
- USPS accounting staff
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMr. Gottheimer (for himself and Mr. Bacon) introduced the following …
Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and …
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases programs, Postal Service stamp program staff
Positive-direction: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases programs
Negative-direction: Postal Service stamp program staff
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology