GAO to study antibiotic use in animal agriculture

WASHINGTON – The General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress, informed U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe on Tuesday that it will conduct a thorough investigative study focusing on the use of antibiotics in animals and its impact on human health and trade policy.

Snowe, and Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., co-authored S1460, legislation designed to protect human health by limiting nontherapeutic use of antibiotics in agriculture.

“We need to gather all the scientific information we can regarding the use of antibiotics so the public is fully informed as to the effectiveness of these medicines,” Snowe said.

The World Health Organization reports that about 14,000 Americans die each year due to drug-resistant infections.

“The recent recommendation by the World Health Organization rightly acknowledges the public health risk associated with the use of antibiotic growth promoters in animal feed and urges nations throughout the world to begin the phase out of these controversial drugs,” she said. “It is my hope that this recommendation and the study by the GAO, in coordination with legislation I have introduced, will improve the public knowledge and public health regarding antibiotic use.”

Specifically, the GAO informed Snowe and Kennedy that it will explore the following questions and report back to the senators:

. What human health risks related to antibiotic resistance from the use of antibiotics in food animals have been identified and how significant are those risks?

. What progress have federal agencies made in addressing human health risks of antibiotic use in food animals?

. How does the use of antibiotics in food animals in the United States compare with that of its key agricultural trading partners and competitors?

. What information is available on how U.S. policy about the use of antibiotics in food animals affects the nation’s ability to export animal products?