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Dear Members of the California Congressional Delegation:
California is the epicenter of a public health threat that is stretching our healthcare system to the breaking point: antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This includes Valley Fever, a deadly fungal infection and one of the biggest human health threats facing Californians . Without timely Congressional action, this threat will only continue to grow, leaving those living in California at an increased risk of fungal and bacterial diseases without available treatments. We urge you to help address this threat by passing the PASTEUR Act before the end of this year.
Three deadly fungal pathogens - histoplasmosis, coccidioidomycosis (commonly called Valley fever), and blastomycosis - are quickly spreading nationwide. The PASTEUR Act addresses market challenges that have led to a shortage of antifungal and antibacterial medications that are essential to combatting diseases, such as Valley Fever. This bill would encourage the development of new and novel anti-fungal and antibiotic medications that the medical community urgently needs. “Despite extensive research dedicated to the development of new therapeutic strategies, there are only a limited number of available drugs to fight against invasive fungal infections. Indeed, only four molecular classes that target three distinct fungal metabolic pathways are currently used in clinical practice to treat essentially systemic fungal infections.”
California is at the forefront of an incredible amount of life-saving and changing health innovation - and because of that you know all too well that development of new medications takes decades, and incredible amount of investment. Unfortunately, for antimicrobials, like those necessary to treat diseases like Valley Fever, those investments do not occur because of market failures. The PASTEUR Act will change it, but swift passage is needed.
According to a recent L.A. Times story , “The incidence and range of Valley Fever has grown dramatically over the last two decades, and some experts warn that the fungus is growing increasingly resistant to drugs.” As temperatures rise, fungi are not only surviving but thriving. Researchers at UC Berkeley have found a pronounced role of California’s recent droughts in driving the transmission of Valley Fever throughout the state, and further recent research conducted by Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Minnesota have found that this California threat is quickly becoming a national one. Diseases like Valley Fever spread quite easily: from proximity to an infected animal, skin scrapes, outbreaks in healthcare facilities, and most commonly from breathing fungal spores in the air. Some fungal pathogens, like Valley Fever, have been known to spread over two hundred miles during heavy winds.
According to the CDC, the direct medical costs in the U.S. alone from fungal infections are $6.7 to $7.5 billion annually. Much of these costs are driven by the more than 75,000 hospitalizations and nearly 9 million outpatient visits that occur every year for fungal diseases. Indirect costs from premature deaths and missed work or school are estimated at an additional $4 billion, placing the total cost at $11.5 billion, conservatively, and could be as high as $48 billion. And that is just fungal. The cost burden of AMR broadly is even greater.
AMR is not unique to California nor to a specific patient population. It is a global threat that impacts all of us, and one that is growing worse. AMR kills 35,000 Americans annually and is responsible for more global deaths than malaria and HIV/AIDS. There are a number of factors making the risk of AMR even greater – from climate to armed conflicts to simply time.
We the undersigned ask that you work with House and Senate leadership to help us address the growing threat of Valley Fever and AMR by prioritizing the passage of the PASTEUR Act by the end of this year. We stand ready to work with you to make this request a reality.
Sincerely,
Rob Purdie, Executive Director, MyCARE
Partnership to Fight Infectious Disease (PFID)