An issue as complex as antimicrobial resistance requires a comprehensive approach that draws upon not only federal agencies and academic researchers, but also industry, healthcare providers, and individual citizens to advance basic and applied research as well as to support public health efforts.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are co-chairs of the Interagency Task Force on Antimicrobial Resistance. Created in 1999, the task force includes a number of other federal agencies as well. In 2001, the representatives created an action plan outlining specific steps needed to combat antimicrobial resistance in healthcare and agricultural settings. A revised action plan was released in 2011. Annual reports describe the progress that has been made towards the outlined action items.
TATFAR was created in 2009 with the goal of improving cooperation between the United States and the European Union (EU) in three key areas: 1) appropriate therapeutic use of antimicrobial drugs in medical and veterinary communities; 2) prevention of healthcare and community-associated drug-resistant infections; and 3) strategies for improving the pipeline of new antimicrobial drugs. The outcomes of the task force include recommendations (PDF) for areas of future cooperation between the EU and the United States presented at the EU-U.S. Summit and published in 2011. NIAID collaborated with the European Commission’s Directorate General for Research and Innovation to organize the 2011 TATFAR workshop on the Challenges and Solutions for the Development of New Diagnostic Tests to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance (PDF). U.S. representatives to TATFAR include the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (co-chair), NIH (NIAID), CDC, and FDA. View the TATFAR website for the 2011 recommendations report, 2014 TATFAR progress report, and related TATFAR documents.
NIAID supports a variety of Public-Private Partnerships, which are collaborations between public institutions (governmental and academic) and non-governmental agencies (such as large pharmaceutical and small biotechnology companies), that will accelerate research and development of new drugs targeting infectious diseases. Some examples are
NIAID is committed to discovering new ways to treat and prevent infectious diseases while minimizing the development of antimicrobial resistance. As part of a comprehensive strategy to address antimicrobial resistance, NIAID convenes meetings bringing together representatives from academic institutions, biotech and pharmaceutical companies, non-profit organizations, and other government agencies. Examples include
back to top
Last Updated April 20, 2016