Every year in the U.S. at least 2 million people become infected with aggressive bacteria that don't respond to the antibiotics that in years past would have knocked them out without a second thought. With treatment options limited due to mishandling and overprescription of antibiotics, more than 23,000 of those infections are fatal. The CDC and other organizations worldwide have dedicated resources to raising awareness and hospitals have adopted stewardship programs to curb the scourge, but a new "Declaration on Combating Antimicrobial Resistance" has added the voices of more than 80 new organizations to the fight, including drugmakers, biotech companies and other international industry bodies.
The declaration's focus spans three broad areas: reducing the development of drug resistance, increasing investment in research and development that meets global public health needs and improving access to high-quality antibiotics for all. Organizations supporting the declaration include:
- The Infectious Disease Society of America
- The European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations
- The World Health Organization
- Johnson & Johnson
- Merck & Co.
- Pfizer
- AstraZeneca
- GlaxoSmithKline
Read the declaration here.