Tick Bites Surge in Massachusetts as Season Off to Worst Start in Years

Those pesky and dangerous ticks that haunt your pets and you during the outdoor season are resulting in hospital emergency room visits at the "highest rate in nearly a decade," reported MassLive.

Massachusetts Tick Season Off to Unusually Fast Start

"Tick season is off to its worst April start in nearly a decade – and Northeast residents are in the epicenter," according to MassLive.

"Tick season seems to be off to a fast start, with an unusually high number of bites already reported across the country," wrote Associated Press Medical Writer Mike Stobbe. "Some doctors are worried about the potential for a bad year for tick-borne diseases."

My daughter-in-law said she has already removed a couple of ticks from her black lab Astro in just the past few days.

Massachusetts Reports Rising Emergency Room Visits

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) tracks tick exposure and tick-borne illnesses using monthly hospital emergency room visit data. Preliminary figures indicate that March was a busy month.

"As of April 2026, tick activity is high and poses a year-round risk, with peak seasons occurring from March through August and again in October-November," according to the DPH.

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Northeast Emerges as Tick Activity Hotspot

WGBH reported, "New data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that in the Northeast, there have been more emergency room visits for tick bites so far this year than any other year in the past decade."

The station reported that Massachusetts "saw a sharp increase in ER visits early this season."

Areas Seeing the Highest Tick Activity in Massachusetts

Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, and the Berkshires generally report the highest numbers of tick issues in Massachusetts each year.

Doctors Urge Caution as Season Develops

Mass General Brigham infectious disease physician Dr. Jacob Lemieux told WGBH, "It's a little early to know whether it's bad – worse – or better, about the same as previous seasons."