Brett Favre reveals Parkinson’s diagnosis during congressional hearing

Brett Favre announced he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, according to AJ Perez of Front Office Sports.

“BREAKING: Brett Favre says he was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease during a Congressional hearing on wasteful welfare spending on Tuesday,” Perez wrote on Twitter. “Favre was linked to $8M in misspent welfare funds.”

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Favre has been retired from the NFL since 2010, his final season with the Minnesota Vikings. Currently, has to face the House Ways and Means Committee for a hearing.

It will focus on the need for “guardrails” when it comes to dispersing Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds, about which $8 million went to Favre himself, a volleyball stadium at his alma mater, and a drug company he backed, per Perez.

“According to his prepared testimony, obtained by Front Office Sports, Favre plans to reveal his diagnosis when he mentions Prevacus, the now defunct drug company that received about $2 million and counted Favre as its largest individual investor,” Perez wrote.

Former NFL MVP Brett Favre reveals he’s been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease while testifying at a House hearing examining welfare reform.

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Favre revealed he lost his investment in Prevacus.

“Sadly, I also lost my investment in a company that I believed was developing a breakthrough concussion drug I thought would help others,” Favre says in his prepared testimony, via FOS. “As I’m sure you’ll understand, while it’s too late for me—I’ve recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s—this is also a cause dear to my heart.”

The Hall of Fame quarterback previously mentioned he suffered “thousands” of concussions from playing football. He played 20 years in the NFL in which he set the record for most consecutive games played (321).

“Since Favre’s name first got linked to the Mississippi welfare scandal in 2020, he has maintained he didn’t know the money that text messages show he lobbied for came from TANF funds,” Perez wrote. “He has not been charged criminally, but he is one of 43 defendants in a lawsuit filed by the Mississippi Department of Human Services to recover more than $90 million in illegally misspent TANF funds that were supposed to support the poorest families in the most impoverished state in the U.S.”

Brett Favre reveals Parkinson’s diagnosis in Congressional hearing

Favre lobbied and $5 million of the TANF funds went to Southern Miss’ Athletic Foundation to cover the construction costs of a volleyball center. His daughter Breleigh committed to play there when former Southern Miss president Rodney Bennett said Favre promised in January 2017 “was going to pay, personally, for whatever the cost of the facility,” per the report.

Favre maintained he wanted to help his alma mater and benefit the surrounding community.

“Southern Miss introduced me to the nonprofit to see if they could help with funding,” Favre said in his prepared testimony. “I had no way of knowing that there was anything wrong with how the state funded the project especially since it was publicly approved by many state agencies and multiple attorneys including the Attorney General.” 

Favre played 20 years in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons (1991), Green Bay Packers (1992-2007), New York Jets (2008) and Minnesota Vikings (2009-10).

He won Super Bowl XXXI with the Packers and was a three-time NFL MVP. Favre’s career totals include: 71,838 yards, 508 touchdowns, 336 interceptions and a 62% completion percentage.