FILE – Retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre participates in a question-and-answer session at a fundraiser for Willow Wood Developmental Center, a facility that provides training and support for special needs students, Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2018, in Jackson, Mississippi. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
Brett Favre revealed on Tuesday during testimony at a congressional hearing on federal welfare reform that he has “recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.”
The football Hall of Famer was speaking before the House Ways and Means Committee, which was debating “guardrails” for the distribution of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds, after nearly $8 million in TANF funds were paid out to Favre, the volleyball varsity at his alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi, and to Prevacus, a bankrupt pharmaceutical company the longtime NFL quarterback backed.
“Sadly, I also lost my investment in a company that I believed was developing a groundbreaking concussion treatment that could help others,” Favre said at a House hearing on Tuesday. “As you can all tell, it’s too late for me. I was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, which is important to me. The doctor who runs that company recently pleaded guilty to misappropriating TANF funds for his own personal use.”
Favre, who played 20 seasons in the NFL and appeared in 321 consecutive regular-season and playoff games, estimated in a 2022 interview with radio show “The Bubba Army” that he suffered “thousands of” concussions during his football career.
Parkinson’s disease is a condition that causes brain function to slow down and affects movement skills. According to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, more than one million people in the United States have the disease, and nearly 90,000 people are diagnosed with Parkinson’s each year.
Favre still implicated in Mississippi welfare scandal
Favre is accused of receiving $1.1 million in federal TANF funds through the state of Mississippi in exchange for speaking engagements dating back to 2017. Favre also allegedly worked with nonprofit organizers and former Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant to route $5 million in TANF funds to build a new volleyball arena at Southern Miss while his daughter played on the team.
Favre has not been arrested or criminally charged in the case, but federal prosecutors allege he is one of 47 “well-connected individuals” who diverted $77 million from intended recipients in one of the poorest states in the nation.
Favre initially paid the state of Mississippi $500,000 back in May 2020, and the remaining $600,000 in October 2021. The state has been charging interest since then. Favre said he was unaware that the funds used at SU were intended for welfare recipients.
“I wanted to help my alma mater and give back to the community,” Favre said during the assembly. “Southern Miss introduced me to the nonprofit to see if they could help financially. I had no way of knowing that there would be an issue with how the state would fund this project, especially since the project had been publicly endorsed by numerous state agencies and multiple lawyers, including the Attorney General.”
