Posted March 4, 2015
Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Susan Collins (R-ME) reintroduced the Prevention of Antibiotic Resistance Act (PARA), according to a Food Safety News article available here. The Wall Street Journal also published an article here, Feedstuffs here, and Meating Place here.
The bill was previously introduced in June 2013, and it would require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to withdraw its approval of medically important antibiotics used for disease prevention or control that are at a high abuse risk.
The legislation also stipulates criteria for determining when an antibiotic is considered safe and effective, according to The Wall Street Journal.
“This lays out a plan for FDA to go forward and standards for determining judicious use of antibiotics in food-producing animals,” says Gail Hansen, a public health veterinarian and senior officer for the antibiotic resistance project at the Pew Charitable Trusts. “The FDA has talked about growth promotion, but that’s only part of how drugs are used for food animals. This is the next big part.”
Sponsors said that the bill addresses a gap in the previous guidelines to eliminate the antibiotics use to make animals gain weight, according to Feedstuffs.
The FDA estimated that 107 antibiotics are used for therapeutic purposes, including disease prevention or control, do not have a defined duration of therapy or are labeled for continuous use. An analysis by the Pew Charitable Trusts estimated that 83 antibiotics used for disease prevention or control have an overlapping dose with a production use.
“These antibiotics are at high risk of being inappropriately administered, which could pose a risk to human health,” said Feinstein.
The American Public Health Association, the Infectious Disease Society of America, Trust for America’s Health, the American College of Preventive Medicine, and the Pew Charitable Trusts endorsed the bill, according to Meating Place.
For more information, the prevention of Antibiotic Resistance Act is available here.
For more information on antibiotic use in agriculture, an article from the Congressional Research Service is available here.
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