Dr. Norman Beatty was featured in a NATIONAL news article – on CNN! – regarding Chagas:
‘Kissing bug’ disease is here to stay in the US, experts say. Here’s why it’s spreading
By: Jen Christensen
Featured Beatty references/quotes from the article:
“We’ve been waiting forever; all of us Chagas people have been waiting for people to recognize this disease is in our communities,”
Beatty hopes broader recognition of Chagas in the US will prompt officials to step up surveillance efforts like what he’s
seen in some other countries. He also hopes health care providers learn to recognize cases sooner and wishes the
US would work to protect people from kissing bugs like it does mosquitoes.
And in Florida, where he works and where about 30% of kissing bugs seem to be positive for the parasites, Beatty said,
people will often send him bug photos or even drop the insects off at his hospital to be tested.
“They’re scared,” he said – and they have a right to be.
Beatty said he tries to help his community as best he can. “There’s not another doctor around here walking around with bugs
in their pockets,” he said. But with more awareness, he hopes others will step up as well.
“I’m just one person,” Beatty said. “It’s a small team, and we have limited resources.”
