BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 23, 2024
The midcoast has the highest rates of tick-borne illnesses in Maine, which is why the state’s biggest health care system chose its Rockport hospital — Pen Bay Medical Center — as the site for research on a proposed new vaccine for Lyme disease. If the vaccine is determined to be safe and effective, it would be a huge advance, as there has not been a Lyme disease vaccine on the U.S. market in more than two decades. As of July 15, there had been 135 cases of Lyme confirmed in Knox County so far this year, which translates to a rate of 328 cases per 100,000 people — the highest in Maine. Several other coastal counties also lead the state in Lyme disease rates for this year, with 251 cases per 100,000 in Lincoln, 247 per 100,000 in Hancock and 216 per 100,000 in Waldo.