POLICY & ADVOCACY
VACCINE AWARENESS, EDUCATION AND ACTION
Getting vaccinated is one of many important steps we each can take to protect ourselves and others. It's a simple, safe and effective way to protect ourselves and the people we care about against harmful diseases. As with any medical decision, having the facts about vaccines and the benefits of vaccination is important to making the best decision for you and your loved ones.
To make sure you have the most accurate information about vaccine recommendations, risks and benefits, we recommend you:
Ask your doctor, your child’s pediatrician or another trusted healthcare provider who knows you, for example, your pharmacist.
Consult America’s experts on infectious diseases at the Infectious Diseases Society of America
Widespread vaccination not only protects you and your loved ones, but others in your community who may not be able to be vaccinated, such as infants and babies, people undergoing cancer treatments or people whose compromised immune systems make them more vulnerable to illness.
ADDRESSING ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE
New medicines to treat antimicrobial-resistant infections that are critical to our national health care in short supply. To address this crisis, we need to create a sustainable ecosystem and marketplace for antimicrobial R&D. And to achieve this, we must change the way antibiotics are prescribed, accessed, consumed, monitored and paid for. This will involve leadership and collaboration from private industry working alongside government and academia to focus on solving complex problems through a comprehensive set of policy solutions.
The shortage of new antimicrobial products has two main causes. First, development of new and novel products to treat AMR infections is very scientifically challenging and significantly risky. Second, the market for new antimicrobial products is not commercially sustainable.
To support the development of new antimicrobial products, policy makers must create strong financial incentives for investing in new treatments paired with policies that address stewardship and surveillance, stabilize the current market through payment and reimbursement reforms, and address barriers that prevent patients from getting access to the appropriate medicines.
Everyone can make a difference – from patients taking their full course of their medicines, to physicians using diagnostics and following clinical prescribing guidelines, to insurers providing access to clinically appropriate medicines without barriers, to policy makers helping to shape an environment that fuels development of new antimicrobial medicines.