Addressing The Threat Of Antibiotic Resistance: Policy Solutions To Fix A Broken Pipeline

Recently, the White House released a major new national strategy to combat antibiotic resistance. As efforts begin to translate that unprecedented announcement into action, it is critical that any strategy to address resistance contain a plan to ensure an adequate antibiotic development pipeline. The overall number of antibiotics reaching the market has declined over time, with 29 and 23 new antibiotics approved in the U.S. in the 1980s and 1990s, respectively, but only nine between 2000 and 2010. Meanwhile, the evolution of drug-resistance has outpaced the development of new antibiotics. Doctors routinely encounter patients with infections that do not respond to currently available treatments. Some life-threatening infections, such as those caused by carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, are resistant to nearly all available therapies. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that in the United States at least two million people are sickened by resistant bacteria each year and 23,000 die as a result. Current State of Antibiotic Development In order to better understand the pipeline and evaluate policies to spur antibiotic development, the Pew Charitable Trusts has identified antibacterial drugs in clinical development (Phases 1-3) for the U.S. market. Published on our website and updated quarterly, this resource provides policymakers, the medical community, and industry stakeholders with an up-to-date picture of drugs in development. As of Septembe...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - Category: Health Management Authors: Tags: All Categories Pharma Policy Public Health Research Source Type: blogs