Anti-Antibiotics Bill

Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Jack Reed (D-RI), and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) have reintroduced a bill to limit the amount of antibiotics used in animal feed. The Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act (PAMTA) was originally introduced in 2010 after two of Sen. Feinstein’s constituents told her about their 12-year-old son who succumbed to an infection that could not be treated by antibiotics. PAMTA will limit the agricultural use of seven types of antibiotics that the Food and Drug Administration has declared “critically important” in human medicine. Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-NY) has introduced a similar bill in Congress; the measure currently has 60 House cosponsors.