Senators Question Agencies’ Lack of Action on Animal Antibiotic Use
U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.)
and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) have authored an August 17, 2015,
letter expressing concern that the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department
of Defense have not yet responded to an executive order establishing
a Presidential Advisory Council on Combatting Antibiotic-Resistant
Bacteria. According to the letter, which claims that food animal production
accounts for 75 percent of “medically important antibiotics sold each
year,” the appointed agencies have failed to provide a formal response
or approve nominations for advisory council members. In particular,
the senators ask that the final council include at least three experts from
outside the food industry.
“As noted in our December 2014 letter, representatives from industrial
animal producers associations and the veterinary drug industry have
publically voiced doubts about the need to reduce antibiotic use in
animals and about the impact that the [Food and Drug Administration’s]
policies will have on the amount of drugs used,” concludes the letter.
“However, public health experts agree that the use of antibiotics in
animal agriculture is a critical contributor to antibiotic resistance.”
Issue 576
