UK Government Boosts AMR Research with Cash Injection

May 24, 2023

The United Kingdom’s government has announced a significant cash injection, worth £39 million (US$48 million), will be made to support antimicrobial resistance (AMR) research through the Global AMR Innovation Fund (GAMRIF).

Part of the funding, worth up to £24 million (US$30 million), will be awarded over the course of a four-year period to support the continuation of early development of novel antibiotics, vaccines, rapid diagnostics, and other products to treat drug-resistant infections. This investment will reinforce the UK’s relationship with the Combating Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB-X) partnership.

Additionally, GAMRIF will invest a total of £5 million (US$6 million) into the Global Antibiotic R&D Partnership over a period of two years. This money will be used for the development of novel antibiotic treatments against major global health priorities as well as assuring global access to these treatments.

This financial announcement has been made as the UK’s health minister, Will Quince, alongside the development minister, Andrew Mitchell, launched the country’s Global Health Framework for 2023 to 2025 during the World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva, Switzerland.

“Antimicrobial resistance is a major threat to global health and has led to millions of tragic deaths per year, but the Global AMR Innovation Fund is supporting cutting-edge research and developing vital new treatments to prevent death and disease across the world,” said Quince at WHA. “This funding will provide a much-needed boost to protect people from diseases such as drug-resistant gonorrhoea, life-threatening sepsis in newborn babies, and serious bacterial infections.”

In response to the announcement of the cash injection, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) issued a statement in support of the action.

“This is a positive step for research into finding long-term solutions for AMR. Beyond research there is an essential need for collaboration, on a global scale, that allows research efforts to be developed into effective antibiotics available for all,” said Claire Machin, ABPI executive director of International Policy and UK Competitiveness, in a May 22, 2023 press release. “Alongside [this] announcement, England has also been leading the way as the first country to implement a pilot scheme for incentivising the development of new treatments using an innovative payment arrangement, but the UK acting on its own cannot combat AMR. Multiple global solutions which bring together governments, healthcare systems, and the pharmaceutical industry are needed at scale if we are to stand a chance against AMR. We look forward to [National Health Service] plans for taking forward the learnings from the pilot, and the development of a more permanent solution for the development of new treatments against AMR.”

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