10.B. Workshop: Combatting AMR: European collaboration to ensure sustained access to effective antibiotics

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the greatest public health threats facing the world today. The health and economic impacts of AMR are a major challenge for all healthcare systems and societies worldwide. It is estimated that antibiotic-resistant infections are responsible for a substantial number of deaths in Europe each year, with a health burden comparable to that of influenza, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS combined and a cost of about €1.1 billion to the healthcare systems of EU/EEA countries. Holistic and multicomponent strategies in accordance with the ‘One Health’ perspective are key to curbing the development and spread of AMR. One crucial component of such strategies is ensuring broad and timely availability of effective antibiotics; this captures both investing in R&D for new antibiotics and safeguarding continued access to new and existing products. Scientific, economic, structural and regulatory barriers continue to limit the development of novel antibiotics with innovative characteristics despite intensified international efforts. Indeed, only a handful of new antibiotics have been developed and launched over the last few decades, and almost none have any innovative characteristics. This means that they are vulnerable to cross-resistance with existing antibiotics. At the same time, while ensuring timely access to new and existing antibiotics is critical, new antibiotics are often only launched in larger markets while supply-chain problems or withdrawals due to low profitability impact the availability of older antibiotics as well. This panel session aims to discuss the challenges facing health systems regarding how to foster research and development for new antibiotics and ensuring sustainable access to new and pre-existing antibiotics in the context of addressing AMR. In particular, it will aim to highlight avenues for collaboration and the potential role of the EU for addressing these challenges. Following a short presentation of the key findings of a policy brief published by the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies at the request of the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, participants will hear reflections from the national and international levels and discuss potential implications and ways forward. Panelists will reflect on the relevant priorities of the upcoming Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2024, as well as the WHO Regional Office for Europe's Regional Roadmap on AMR. KEY MESSAGES: • Fostering innovation and ensuring sustained access to effective antibiotics are paramount for addressing AMR. • Collaboration across countries, supported by the EU and the WHO will be key to achieving these goals.