The Hill: Antimicrobial resistance threatens our health security — both domestically and globally
Barbara Murray, J. Ralph Meadows professor of medicine and director of the Infectious Diseases Division at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center, and chair of the Infectious Diseases Society of America’s Antimicrobial Resistance Committee

“…[C]ongressional attention to reauthorizing the Pandemic and All Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA) is timely. … [I]n the years since its enactment [in 2006], the spread of antibiotic-resistant infections, the greatest public health threat facing our country, has only gained momentum, with the diminishing arsenal of effective antibiotic medicines. The spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria poses a major threat not only to our ability to treat and prevent specific diseases, but to provide medical care across a range of emergency events. The reauthorization of PAHPA gives legislators an opportunity to strengthen our weakest link by providing pharmaceutical companies with a necessary incentive to fill an unmet need. … Antibiotic resistance puts our health security at risk, both within the U.S. and globally. … It is critical that PAHPA reauthorization addresses that threat” (6/8).