President Obama today announced a national plan to combat the threat of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. It is the first-ever White House plan to specifically address antibiotic resistance. The effort would require $1.2 billion from Congress in its first year. “There are parts of this plan that we can implement on our own right now, and wherever we can act without Congress, we will,” the President said. Dr. Tom Frieden, the director of the Centers for Disease Congress and Prevention, spoke to members of Congress this week and urged Congress to fund the program.
In the plan, federal agencies would be tasked with combating the misuse of antibiotics in humans and in animals, as well as strengthening the infection-control practices that are used by health providers. The plan is the result of months-long discussions by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. Oversight of the plan will be handed off to the newly created Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, which will include up to 30 members from the Department of Health and Human Services.
Specific goals outlined in the plan for controlling the spread of “superbugs” by the year 2020 include:
- Slowing the spread of resistance bacteria
- Strengthening surveillance
- Speeding the development of tests and new drugs
- Improving how government agencies work together on the issue
- Expanding international efforts on the global health threat
President Obama’s $1.2 billion funding request is not included in the recently passed Republican budgets in the House and Senate, though the two bodies will now head to a conference committee where changes can still be made.
