PCAST previews antibiotic recommendations

The President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology announced its recommendations for tackling antibiotic resistance. Co-chair Eric Lander said FDA should create an accelerated approval pathway for antibiotics to be used in limited populations. He added that Congress should give FDA authority to create that pathway.

Last year, a bipartisan group of representatives introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that would create such a pathway for antibiotics based on a limited number of patients or alternative endpoints. The Antibiotic Development to Advance Patient Treatment (ADAPT) Act was referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee's subcommittee on health (see BioCentury Extra, Dec. 12, 2013). ...