Brian Nearing is reporting for the Times Union Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses reached an all-time high in New York in 2017, with nearly 12,000 confirmed cases of four major tick-borne diseases, an increase of 32 percent, according to data recently released by the state Health Department. Lyme disease accounted for about 80 percent of the total. Three other diseases, anaplasmosis, basesiosis and ehrlichiosis, also continued to increase, state figures showed. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a record number of tick-borne diseases nationwide in 2017, up 23 percent from the year before. That report warned that such diseases would likely continue to increase, as ticks continue to spread into new areas. CDC warned earlier this year that the U.S. is not prepared to control these threats. "Proven and publicly accepted methods are needed to better prevent tick bites and to control ticks and tickborne diseases," according to the CDC. In New York, Lyme was reported last year in all 57 upstate counties; the three lesser known diseases also appear to be spreading into new areas. Anaplamosis was found in 34 upstate counties.  Rensselaer County had the most cases, followed by Columbia, Saratoga and Washington counties. Babesiosis spread from 15 counties to 26, and ehrlichiosis was found in 21 counties, up from 17. Read the full story in the Times Union.