LAUSR

Antibiotic advocates have been steadily building the case for pull incentives as a means of offsetting the challenging economics of antibiotic development. The Review on Antimicrobial Resistance, commissioned by the UK government and chaired by economist Jim O’Neill, recommended ‘market-entry rewards’ of $0.8–1.3 billion for new antibiotics in 2016. Earlier this year a final report by DRIVE-AB, an IMI-funded project into the economics of antibiotics, estimated that rewards of $1–1.25 billion could help bring 13–23 truly innovative antibiotics to market in the next 30 years. With the introduction of the REVAMP Act, politicians and funders may be set to heed these calls. Industry’s exodus from antibiotic R&D, meanwhile, continues. In July, Novartis became the latest large pharma company to exit antibacterial and antiviral research. It is laying off 140 employees in the process. “While the science for these programs is compelling, we have decided to prioritize our resources in other areas where we believe we REVAMPing antibiotic incentives