Antibiotics need coordinated G7 investment | Pharmaceuticals industry
Recent media coverage of the pipeline of new antibiotics (the pipeline of new drugs to fight superbugs is ‘worrisomely thin,’ experts warn, March 11) is a timely reminder that antimicrobial resistance is one of our most pressing health crises. The reason the pipeline is so thin is a fundamental market failure.
One of the most logical ways to protect antibiotics is to limit their use to the most essential cases, but that means fewer antibiotics sold. If revenues are limited, companies have less incentive to invest in the development and manufacturing of new antibiotics. This is where political intervention is crucial.
The UK is a pioneer in this area, with the NHS-Nice “Netflix subscription model” for antibiotics, whereby companies receive a fixed annual payment for access to an effective new antibiotic, regardless of the quantity used. By decoupling revenue from volume, responsible antibiotic use and sustainable returns for manufacturers are aligned. But this is not enough to solve the problem on a large scale.
Our research showed that coordinated G7 investment to encourage the development of new antibiotics would produce exceptional returns. In the UK alone, the returns would be 11:1 over 30 years, and in the US they could be as high as 28:1. Globally, this represents millions of lives saved. The cost of inaction far exceeds the investment.
The evidence is clear, but we must act now. We cannot rely solely on business to solve what should be an international political and societal priority.
Grace Hampson
Director, Office of Health Economics
