Representative Matthew Overcast (R-Ava) has five children. Three of them have alpha gal. Alpha gal is an allergy transmitted from some types of ticks that makes a person allergic to many types of meat products.
Overcast presented a bill that adds alpha gal to a list of diseases that must be reported to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. He said he has to be vigilant with food and medication for his children.
"If Dad doesn't make it, it doesn't get done," Overcast said.
Some members of the House Health and Mental Health Committee raised issues with the logistics of the bill. A 2023 study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds Missouri is one of the states with the highest number of cases of alpha gal in the country
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