Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, introduced legislation Feb. 28 designed to aid in the development of new strategies to combat antibiotic resistance and protect hospitals from the spread of superbugs, according to a report from News 5 Cleveland.
Here are three things to know.
1. The Strategies to Address Antibiotic Resistance Act (STAAR Act) would further facilitate the implementation of antimicrobial stewardship programs in hospitals, permit the CDC to partner with local health departments on prevention efforts and allow the CDC to share data on antibiotic resistant infections.
2. Brown has been working with researchers and physicians to develop the STAAR Act for years, according to News 5 Cleveland.
"We, number one, don't know enough, second we've not moved fast enough as a society on research and third, this threat gets bigger every year, that's why I've been working on this for some time," Mr. Brown said, according to the report. "There's not enough research being done and we're not close enough to developing new, strong antibiotics."
3. Brown's proposed legislation garnered praise from both Infectious Diseases Society of America and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.
"The legislation introduced today by Sen. Brown addresses this complex public health issue head-on by providing much needed resources support for developing innovative approaches towards infection surveillance, antimicrobial stewardship and research that can have a meaningful impact on prevention of antimicrobial resistance and patient safety," Keith Kaye, MD, president of SHEA, said in an emailed release. "We urge Members of Congress to join Sen. Brown in addressing the critical issue of antimicrobial resistance and in doing so, helping to protect patients from life-threatening infections."
To learn more about antibiotic resistance, click here.
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