WHO Releases List Of 12 Drug-Resistant Bacteria Posing Greatest Health Threat To Humans

Financial Times: WHO raises alarm over drug-resistant superbugs
“The World Health Organization has issued a call to arms to companies and governments to develop antibiotics to combat superbugs’ growing resistance to existing medicines…” (Viña, 2/27).

Fortune: The WHO Says These 12 Deadly Superbugs Pose the Greatest Health Threats to Humans
“Global health officials on Monday unveiled a first-of-its-kind list of the world’s most deadly ‘superbugs’ in a bid to urge businesses and governments to get serious about developing new antibiotics…” (Mukherjee, 2/27).

Humanosphere: WHO’s most wanted: 12 families of bacteria that threaten humanity
“…WHO officials hope that this list we will spur research and development of new antibiotics. Many of the bacteria listed are already resistant to multiple antibiotics…” (Murphy, 2/27).

Nature: The drug-resistant bacteria that pose the greatest health threats
“…The agency’s aim in listing these ‘priority pathogens’ is to steer funds towards development of the most crucial antimicrobials. Researchers say the list is a useful reminder of the danger of bacteria that are becoming resistant to antibiotics…” (Willyard, 2/28).

New York Times: Deadly, Drug-Resistant ‘Superbugs’ Pose Huge Threat, WHO Says
“…The WHO report rated research on three pathogens as ‘critical priority.’ They are carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, along with all members of the Enterobacteriaceae family resistant to both carbapenems and third-generation cephalosporins…” (McNeil, 2/27).

STAT: WHO releases list of world’s most dangerous superbugs
“… ‘Antibiotic resistance is growing and we are running out of treatment options. If we leave it to market forces alone, the new antibiotics we most urgently need are not going to be developed in time,’ said Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, the WHO’s assistant director-general for health systems and innovation…” (Branswell, 2/27).

U.N. News Centre: U.N. health agency lists antibiotic-resistant bacteria which pose human threat
“…G20 health experts will meet this week in Berlin. The list is intended to spur governments to put in place policies that incentivize basic science and advanced R&D by both publicly funded agencies and the private sector investing in new antibiotic discovery. While more R&D is vital, alone, it cannot solve the problem. To address resistance, there must also be better prevention of infections and appropriate use of existing antibiotics in humans and animals, as well as rational use of any new antibiotics that are developed in future” (2/27).

The KFF Daily Global Health Policy Report summarized news and information on global health policy from hundreds of sources, from May 2009 through December 2020. All summaries are archived and available via search.

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