The G7 presidency presents a unique opportunity for France to make antimicrobial resistance a strategic public health priority
- BEAM Alliance
As the G7 meets in Evian (Haute-Savoie) from June 15 to 17, some fifty experts call on France, in an op-ed, in Le Monde, to address this threat to the foundations of modern medicine.
Antibiotic resistance represents a major global health and economic threat. In France, it is responsible for approximately 32,700 deaths (of which more than 7,300 are directly attributable to it) and generates more than 1.5 billion euros in additional health expenditure each year.
But beyond the economic burden it represents, antibiotic resistance threatens the very foundations of our modern medicine. Cancer treatments, transplants, intensive care, neonatal medicine, and even routine surgery all depend on the continuous availability of effective antibiotics.
This is why the G7 presidency represents a unique opportunity for France to make antimicrobial resistance a strategic priority for health security by asserting its leadership through coordination of international action, as it did at the One Health Summit in April.
The fight against antimicrobial resistance must be structured around four strategic priorities. The G7 One Health agenda must first explicitly recognize the growing burden of mortality and the economic cost associated with antimicrobial resistance, the threat it poses to modern medicine, and the urgent need to preserve access to effective antimicrobials and diagnostic tests for practitioners and patients.
Encourage R&D
The second priority is to build a sustainable French model for access and innovation. Without innovation, the fight against antimicrobial resistance is doomed to failure. However, in a market where returns on investment are nonexistent, research and development (R&D) can no longer keep pace with the increasing resistance nor cope with unmet clinical needs. Consequently, the portfolio of new antimicrobials has become poor, and diagnostic tests are neither valued nor used as they should be.
During their past years presidency, most G7 countries introduced—or took ations towards the introducion of new incentive mechanisms to encourage R&D and patient access to new antimicrobials, thereby averting an alarming but now imminent health crisis. This is particularly true of the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, Germany, and Canada. The European Union has also adopted measures in recent months as part of its review of European pharmaceutical legislation aimed at strengthening the market’s attractiveness.
While France is recognized as a leader in the responsible use of antibiotics in hospitals, thanks to a particularly well-structured network of reference and exellence centers, it lags behind when it comes to specific measures to support the development of new antibiotics and facilitate patient access to novel antibiotics. The G7, however, provides the ideal forum to identify the incentive mechanism best suited to the French context and to commit to its rapid implementation.
Thus, the announcement in April of a “special status for antibiotics” could serve as the basis for such a model. This should involves securing patient access to antimicrobials and innovative diagnostics, rewarding high-value innovations that address unmet medical needs, complementing policies on appropriate and responsible use, and finally, strengthening national and European health preparedness.
Such an initiative would demonstrate France’s commitment to effectively implementing the new European pharmaceutical legislation and would position the country as a leader in Europe.
Other measures could include, in addition to schemes already in place, the funding for direct R&D support schemes that have already proven effective abroad, alongside the creation of a public investment fund to partner with the few private investors still present in this sector.
Essential safety net
The third priority is to protect the future of modern medicine. Infections are the second leading cause of death in cancer patients, after cancer itself, with effective antibiotics unanimously recognized as an essential safety net for these patients who are four to six times more likely to develop resistant infections.
The inability to develop and ensure rapid access to novel antimicrobials therefore poses a threat to cancer patients and immunocompromised patients.
Finally, the aim is to help shape the fight against antimicrobial resistance in the future. Building on the international pact to preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics, announced in April, France could leverage its surveillance expertise to strengthen global coordination for the early detection of resistance. And, why not, appoint an ambassador to represent French positions on this issue, while also helping to keep it at the forefront of the political agenda?
Ahead of the United Nations high-level meeting on antimicrobial resistance scheduled for 2029, France faces a historic opportunity to take the lead on a major issue for global health.
