Financial Times: New drugs way to avoid an antibiotic apocalypse
Editorial Board

“…The commendable O’Neill plan has two main elements. To rejuvenate the earliest stage of research, a $2bn antimicrobial resistance innovation fund would seed lab work around the world. … The second part of the plan is less straightforward but gets to the heart of the market failure in antibiotics. A global body, its shape and governance still to be defined, would make huge lump-sum payments to companies developing drugs that meet pre-agreed specifications. These upfront payments — prizes in effect — might be worth as much as $3.5bn each. … The O’Neill proposals are still rudimentary but they represent the best starting point so far in developing new weapons to see off the threatened antibiotic apocalypse. Governments, health agencies, and the pharmaceuticals industry should now engage seriously in drawing up a detailed, practical plan to put them into effect” (5/14).