The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says climate change is leading to longer and more active tick seasons — and in Kalamazoo County, tick-borne illnesses are on the rise.
According to data collected by the Kalamazoo County Department of Health and Community Services, the county recorded its highest ever number of Lyme disease cases in 2025. The disease is caused by bacteria carried by black-legged ticks, which are the second most common type of tick in Michigan.
KCDHCS spokesperson Matt Johnson said the county encourages residents to be on the lookout for ticks.
“If you look at 2016, we had 13 [Lyme disease] cases in Kalamazoo County for that whole year, And in 2025 we had 222 cases. And that trend is continuing for this year as well," Johnson said.
That represents an increase of 1608% in Lyme disease cases county-wide over 10 years. Johnson said the first quarter of 2026 had 19 reported Lyme cases, as compared to eight in the first quarter of 2025.
"The state of Michigan is now a high-incidence state for Lyme disease. So, it's just definitely a trend that we've seen here in our community and the state at large," Johnson said.
He said county and state health officials are trying to get the word out about the signs and symptoms of Lyme disease, which might include flu-like symptoms and migraines. They're also trying to dispel some common misconceptions.
Some people associate Lyme disease with a bullseye-shaped rash. "But you don't always get that bullseye rash. It does happen, you know, it's more associated with Lyme disease, but it doesn't always happen," Johnson said.
Monitoring other vector-borne illnesses
In the past few years, Johnson said Kalamazoo County has also recorded three cases of anaplasmosis, another tick-borne disease.
Lyme disease, anaplasmosis and other tick-borne illnesses can be treated with the antibiotic doxycycline if caught fast enough.
Johnson said HCS currently recommends reaching out to a primary care provider if you have signs, symptoms or a suspected tick bite to discuss treatment. The health department doesn't provide doxycycline for tick bites — but Johnson said the uptick in cases may eventually change that.
“It's something that we're probably looking to in the future as we are seeing this large increase in cases here — is [doxycycline] a resource that we need to start providing to the to the public," Johnson said.
The environmental health department at HCS does regular "tick drags" to collect ticks in areas around Kalamazoo County and test them for diseases. Johnson said they also gather "pools" of mosquitos to test for vector-borne diseases.
"And they're sending those off to be tested for things like West Nile, Triple E, Zika, Jamestown Canyon virus. And it's not uncommon that, starting around this time of the year, we start seeing some of those pools test positive for those types of things," Johnson said.
This season at HCS, Johnson is also focusing on educating residents about diseases carried by mosquitos and the risks of mosquito bites. He said a human case of West Nile Virus recorded last year in Kalamazoo County makes the messaging even more important.
"If it's in our community, then that's when we need to really start being vigilant about preventing mosquito bites as well and monitoring those symptoms if you are outdoors for any extended amount of time," Johnson said.
Promoting prevention and awareness
HCS is encouraging residents to practice tick prevention by wearing long socks and pants when possible and using EPA-approved bug repellent containing ingredients like DEET.
Johnson said checking for ticks is just as important as tick prevention. That includes doing a full-body check after spending time outside and removing ticks using a safe tools like specialized tick removers.
“Even if you're in your own garden, backyard, front yard, that type of thing, you're still exposed the ticks in those scenarios as well. So anytime you spend any time outdoors, you want to make sure that you are preventing yourself from getting tick bites, but then also checking for ticks afterwards," Johnson said.
Free bug repellent is available at the HCS building on E. Alcott St, and Johnson said HCS will be tabling at several community events this summer handing out free bug repellent, tick removers and tick identifiers.
More information about ticks and vector-borne diseases can be found on the HCS website.
