Brett Favre announced Tuesday during his testimony at a congressional hearing on federal welfare reform that he had been “recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.”
The Football Hall of Fame member was speaking before the House Appropriations Committee, which was debating “guardrails” regarding the distribution of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds, nearly $8 million of which went to Favre, a volleyball stadium at his alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi, and Prevacus, a defunct pharmaceutical company backed by the longtime NFL quarterback.
“Unfortunately, I also lost my investment in a company that I believed was developing a breakthrough concussion drug that I thought would help others,” Favre said during the House hearing on Tuesday. “I’m sure you’ll understand that while it’s too late for me – I was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s – this is also a cause that is very close to my heart. Recently, the doctor who runs the company pleaded guilty to using TANF funds for his own purposes.”
Favre, who played 20 NFL seasons, including 321 consecutive regular season and playoff games, estimated during a 2022 interview on the radio show “The Bubba Army” that he suffered “thousands” of concussions during his football career.
Parkinson’s is a disease that causes brain damage and impairs motor skills. According to the Parkinson’s Foundation, over one million people in the United States live with the disease and nearly 90,000 people are diagnosed each year.
Favre still involved in the welfare scandal in Mississippi
Favre is alleged to have accepted $1.1 million in federal funds from the state of Mississippi’s TANF program. He is alleged to have accepted these funds in exchange for missed speeches in 2017. Favre is also alleged to have worked with a nonprofit organizer and former Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant to transfer $5 million in TANF funds to build a new volleyball arena at Southern Miss while his daughter played for the team.
Favre has not been arrested and faces no criminal charges in the matter. He is one of 47 “well-connected individuals” who diverted $77 million in funds from intended recipients in one of the country’s poorest states, federal prosecutors alleged.
Favre initially repaid $500,000 of his first payment to Mississippi in May 2020 and the remaining $600,000 in October 2021. The state has been collecting interest since then. Favre said he was unaware that the funds used at Southern Miss were intended for welfare recipients.
“I wanted to help my alma mater and do something good for the community,” Favre told Congress. “Southern Miss introduced me to the nonprofit to see if they could support me financially. I had no way of knowing that there was anything wrong with the state funding of the project, especially since it was publicly approved by many state agencies and several attorneys, including the Attorney General.”
