Overview
- In April, CDC surveillance shows emergency‑department visits for tick bites running at the highest weekly pace for this point in the season since 2017.
- Hotspots include the Northeast and parts of the Upper Midwest, with Pennsylvania and New Jersey flagged by researchers and Wisconsin reporting an ER tick‑bite rate about double last year.
- Testing underscores risk beyond Lyme disease, with about 30% of black‑legged ticks carrying Lyme bacteria in Minnesota and Powassan virus detected in two Illinois counties.
- Experts tie the jump to a mild, wet winter and longer‑term warming that help ticks survive and become active earlier, increasing encounters in yards, trails, and brushy edges.
- Health officials urge EPA‑registered repellents, permethrin‑treated clothing, thorough tick checks, and prompt removal because Lyme bacteria often need about a day to transmit, while viruses like Powassan can pass much faster; they also refute viral claims of planted “boxes of ticks” as unsupported.