AUGUSTA – Sen. Bruce Bryant, D-Dixfield, is looking for people with Lyme disease to tell state legislators their stories.

Bryant’s bill, which seeks to educate those with high risk and create a study group to find treatments and preventions, will be heard in front of the state’s Insurance and Financial Services committee at 1 p.m. Tuesday on the fourth floor of the State House in Augusta.

At the hearing, doctors and lawyers will talk about the disease, but Bryant wants real people to add a personal touch to the debate.

“People struggling with Lyme disease can come let us know how the Legislature might be able to help,” Bryant said.

Bryant’s bill requires insurance policies to provide coverage for treatment. It also will require employers who employ people working in high-risk areas, such as wooded or low-brush areas, to educate them about the disease. The bill charges the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention with the task to study the disease in Maine and its effects.

Bryant said he was encouraged to put the bill in after learning about the problem through his constituents while he was campaigning.