We Are Losing Antibiotics—And We Can’t Afford To

Commentary
Local healthcare systems across the country are at risk of no longer working as we once knew them. The problem is doctors and nurses are running out of antibiotics to treat their patients–and the costs of inaction threatens the health and financial well-being of every American.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when bacteria and fungi develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them. Combined with a dwindling development pipeline for new antimicrobial drugs, AMR presents serious concerns to public health.
Should safe and effective antibiotics disappear, innovative medical treatments will need to be reconsidered–and decades of medical technology advancements that improve health outcomes of patients will be undone. The sheer size of the health system disruption that would occur without this infection prevention system will impact everyone….


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