Creating a Sustainable Innovation Ecosystem for
Antimicrobial R&D: Policy Recommendations
Representatives from the U.S., Japan, and Canada gathered on August 1 in Seattle to examinedeliberate steps their countries can take to address the global threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR)
ahead of next year’s United Nations General Assembly’s High-level Meeting on AMR.

Panelists agreed there is significant work to be done to avert millions of needless deaths and trillions of dollars in added
health care expenditures in the coming decades.

Expand the number of stakeholders invested in AMR policy changes and market reforms

Convincing health ministers to priori ze AMR is not enough; we should engage ﬁnance ministers to drive policy changes.
And all stakeholders must ﬁnd new ways to ensure that legislatures, the biopharmaceu cal industry, medical socie es,
and think tanks see AMR as an urgent priority. We can educate decision makers, provide country-speciﬁc research withhealth and economic forecas ng, and work with pa ent groups. More coordinated public-private synergy is neededaround diﬀerent areas of AMR, including human and animal health, agriculture, and the environment. The threat ofresistance transcends health care; it may even undermine military readiness. Na onal security leadership should bebrought into the conversa on to strategize across their leadership.

Governments must implement meaningful and timely economic
pull mechanisms to incentivize R&D in novel antimicrobials

The broken marketplace for an bio cs has depressed investment in an microbial research and development tounsustainable lows. Private investment in early- and late-stage research will be rekindled if governments pursue policies
that change how an bio cs are valued and reimbursed, allowing drug makers to be rewarded for innova on. As
promising as pull incen ves are, they only work if they are large enough to a ract investment. Therefore, G7 and G20
na ons need to pass ﬁnancially meaningful policies. As it can take upwards of ten years and $1 billion USD to bring adrug to market, policymakers should act swi ly.

Include patient voices in public and private decision-making, andgive them more weapons in the fight against AMR

Millions of pa ents worldwide are already being harmed by the scarcity of eﬀec ve an microbial treatments—
par cularly those who are living with diseases such as cancer and diabetes, and other diseases impacted by rising rates ofAMR. Their lived experiences demonstrate the human toll of uncontrolled infec ons. Unlike other diseases, there is no“face” of AMR; it cuts across pa ent popula ons. Connec ng pa ents with the media and the public will bring visibility towhat can seem like a nebulous threat. Stakeholders should convene pa ent roundtables, and pa ent groups should be
empowered to connect with lawmakers who hold the keys to reform. This will be reinforced by the forthcoming updated
GRAM Report, which will contain in-depth regional data.

For more information, please contact Jaclyn Levy, Director of North American Policy at AMR Action Fund,at jaclyn.levy@amractionfund.com, Deepali Patel, Director of International Policy at AMR Action Fund, atdeepali.patel@amractionfund.com, or Yui Kohno, Manager at HGPI, at yui_kono@hgpi.org.
This document was prepared by the AMR Action Fund and HGPI as a thematic summary of the event.
The statements do not necessarily represent the views of all participants or organizations.