The Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria (“Advisory Council”) has issued a Request for Information, seeking responses from industry stakeholders and the general public on five questions related to efforts and strategies to combat antibiotic-resistance.
The Advisory Council provides advice, information, and recommendations to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regarding programs and policies that are intended to support the implementation of the National Strategy for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria and the National Action Plan for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria.
The Advisory Council recently published their first report, Initial Assessments of the National Action Plan for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, at their second public meeting March 30-31, 2016. The purpose of this RFI is to gain additional information from the public on the subject matter in several areas that are addressed in the Action Plan. The responses that are gathered from the RFI will be reviewed by the Advisory Council and will be taken under advisement as the Advisory Council continues their work.
The five questions the Advisory Council would like to start reviewing in more detail are as follows:
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Describe how organizations are influencing curricula regarding primary prevention (antibiotic stewardship, infection prevention, and control). Please include information about certification examinations, requirements, and continuing education, if relevant.
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Describe how healthcare organizations can best: (a) educate and provide feedback to providers in clinics/facilities about infectious diseases diagnostic testing, optimal antibiotic prescribing, and infection prevention; where relevant, please include information about what incentives and disincentives these organizations have in place with the goal of improving antibiotic prescribing (e.g., using clinical decision support) and prevent spread of resistant infections; and, (b) encourage and/or incentivize providers to report antibiotic use and resistance data for all patient populations.
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Please provide examples of successful behavior change models that can be applied to preventive strategies, such as infection control and antibiotic stewardship.
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Please provide information on the best ways to collect data on antibiotic use [and resistance] in animal agriculture through public-private collaborations. Your response can include information on the types of data to be collected, including the method of collection, and the metrics for reporting the data. If helpful, please cite sample models as examples to depict your answer.
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Please provide information on the different resources that exist to promote the understanding of how antibiotics are being used in humans and animals in different parts of the world. Your response can include information on the types of support to connect with such resources, as appropriate (examples include public-private partnerships, strategic resourcing, or other means).
The RFI is expected to be published in the Federal Register on May 23, 2016, and responses to the questions must be received by 11:59 p.m. thirty days thereafter, putting the deadline on June 22, 2016. The questions are available for answering through an online form here. Alternatively, individuals who wish to send their response via email can do so by emailing CARB@hhs.gov, indicating the question number(s) for which they are responding.
The next public meeting of the Advisory Council will be June 21-22, 2016, and will focus on incentives for the development of vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics, in addition to the environment and anti-biotic resistance.