Brett Favre tells Congress that he has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease

Former NFL quarterback Brett Favre has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, he told Congress on Tuesday as part of testimony about his involvement in a welfare corruption scandal in Mississippi.

In 2022, welfare funds from the state of Mississippi were redirected to fund speaking engagements from Favre, as well as projects at the University of Southern Mississippi, Favre’s alma mater. The former Green Bay Packers star was accused of being paid $1.1 million for speeches he did not make and for lobbying for $5 million in state funds to be used to build a new volleyball facility at USM.

He was also an investor in a biotech company connected to the case that was developing concussion treatments.

"Sadly, I also lost an investment in a company that I believed was developing a breakthrough concussion drug I thought would help others, and I’m sure you’ll understand why it’s too late for me because I’ve recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s," Favre said before the House Ways and Means Committee.

While it's unclear if Favre’s diagnosis is related to his 20 seasons playing in the NFL, the former player experienced “thousands” of concussions throughout his football career, he said.

A 2020 study published in Family Medicine and Community Health found that even a single concussion can increase a person’s likelihood of being diagnosed with Parkinson’s by 57%.

As for the alleged corruption, Favre maintains that he didn’t know the payments he received for speaking engagements came from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. He has since repaid the state $1.1 million. He has not been charged with a crime.

“The challenges my family and I have faced over the last three years — because certain government officials in Mississippi failed to protect federal TANF funds from fraud and abuse, and are unjustifiably trying to blame me, those challenges have hurt my good name and are worse than anything I faced in football,” Favre said Tuesday.