H.R. 4348: To reauthorize the Kay Hagan Tick Act, and for other purposes.

The Kay Hagan Tick Act set up three things: a national strategy for diseases spread by ticks and mosquitoes, grants for regional centers of excellence that study them, and extra federal support for state, local, and tribal health departments. Its authorization covered fiscal years 2021 through 2025.

H.R. 4348 renews all three for fiscal years 2026 through 2030, so the federal tick and mosquito disease framework stays on the books instead of running on an expired authorization. It does not create a new program or add a new dollar figure; how much each year actually gets is still decided in annual appropriations.

The bill makes two wording changes along the way. Regional centers are told to help increase the country's capacity to identify, report, prevent, and respond to these diseases, putting outbreak response into their job description rather than leaving them as research hubs.

The second change is about who is at the table. Current law names the Tick-Borne Disease Working Group, created by the 21st Century Cures Act, as a body federal officials consult on the national strategy. H.R. 4348 replaces that with "appropriate individuals," leaving the choice to the department.

The bill has drawn little opposition so far: the Energy and Commerce Committee approved it 48-0, and the full House passed it by voice vote in July 2026.