Dive Brief:
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A new Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) report found that its members filled 13% fewer prescriptions for broad spectrum antibiotics between 2010 and 2016.
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The report said the reduction shows public health campaigns aimed at curbing overuse of common medicines are working . Using those types of antibiotics too often would “most likely... trigger the development of antibiotic-resistant strains.”
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The report had a troubling finding as well. Prescriptions for antibiotics reserved for use as a last resort to fight bacteria that have developed resistance to other antibiotics (often called superbugs) increased 30% — the only category for antibiotics that increased.
Dive Insight:
Growing antibiotic resistance is one of healthcare's biggest long-term concerns. The report's finding that in one in five cases, patients were prescribed reserved antibiotics when they were not likely to be an effective treatment should be a wakeup call.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study released in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) last year discovered that at least 30% of antibiotics prescribed in the U.S. were unnecessary. The CDC warned that inappropriate use of antibiotics will result in healthcare losing “the most powerful tool we have to fight life-threatening infections.” Earlier this year, the World Health Organization (WHO) released its first-ever list of superbugs, and said new antibiotics are critically needed.
Organizations like BCBSA could make a difference by raising awareness with reports like this one and furthering provider education. WHO suggests incorporating evidence-based recommendations for reducing hospital-acquired infections in provider organization's surgical safety checklists. The effort could look something like Intermountain's recently announced campaign to reduce opioid prescriptions by 40% by the end of next year.
The BCBSA report found pediatricians contributed to the biggest prescription reductions. Researchers said antibiotic prescriptions for children dropped 16% between 2010 and 2016 with the steepest decline among infants (22%).
The study also found region plays a part in the number of antibiotic prescriptions. Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas had the highest rates of prescriptions filled. Those states saw nearly three times more prescriptions than the lowest states — Hawaii, Oregon and Montana. Also, people in rural states filled prescriptions at a rate 16% higher than Blue Cross Blue Shield members in urban areas.