Thanks very much for joining us here today.
Just following up on Ms. Davies' comments, the earlier witnesses were not as concerned about false positives and that we were overstating the incidence of Lyme disease. Rather, they were very concerned about all of these false negatives, where people had apparently taken the test and were told, categorically, that they didn't have Lyme disease. They travelled to the United States. They went through exhaustive tests there. They were told categorically there that, yes, they do have Lyme disease. They returned and their physicians continued to say to them that they didn't have Lyme disease. So that was the frustration and the challenge they raised.
Also, this is also what we've really been hearing from constituents over time. I'm certainly not a physician, and I don't mean to put an overabundant weight on these anecdotal representations. However, it's quite clear that these people are in pain. They are suffering. It's person after person coming forward saying he or she is not able to be diagnosed with Lyme disease.
I suppose part of our collaborative approach here, in working with all parties, is to really raise awareness about Lyme disease across the country, so that physicians are aware and are testing for this, and that they too take it into consideration. Some of our witnesses have indicated that no matter how they explained it, their physicians would say, no, you simply don't have Lyme disease.
So is there an approach for all these false negatives, or what is the best understanding at this point?