Antimicrobial resistance: A large and growing problem

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a large and growing problem with the potential for enormous health and economic consequences, globally. As such, AMR has become a central issue at the top of the public health agenda of OECD countries and beyond. This chapter brings together the main messages of this publication and describes the key policy implications from new OECD analyses on the health and economic burden of AMR and on innovative actions to fight this top public health issue. The chapter presents AMR trends and projections in 52 OECD, Group of Twenty (G20) and European Union (EU) countries and makes a strong economic case to upscale investments in policies to promote prudent use of antibiotics in the human health sector and in policies to prevent the spread of infections. The chapter concludes by presenting the expected effectiveness, impact on healthcare expenditure and cost-effectiveness of such policies in 33 OECD and EU countries.