Meeting of the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria

AGENCY:

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Office of the Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

As stipulated by the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is hereby giving notice that a meeting is scheduled to be held for the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria (PACCARB). The meeting will be open to the public via webex and teleconference; a pre-registered public comment session will be held during the meeting. Pre-registration is required for members of the public who wish to attend the meeting via webex/teleconference. Individuals who wish to send in their pre-recorded or written public comments should send an email to CARB@hhs.gov. Registration information is available on the website http://www.hhs.gov/paccarb and must be completed by February 8, 2021. Additional information about registering for the meeting and providing public comment can be obtained at http://www.hhs.gov/paccarb on the Meetings page.

DATES:

The meeting is scheduled to be held on February 10, 2021, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and February 11, 2021, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET (times are tentative and subject to change). The confirmed times and agenda items for the meeting will be posted on the website for the PACCARB at http://www.hhs.gov/paccarb when this information becomes available. Pre-registration for attending the meeting is required to be completed no later than February 8, 2021.

ADDRESSES:

Instructions regarding attending this meeting virtually will be posted one week prior to the meeting at: http://www.hhs.gov/paccarb.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jomana Musmar, M.S., Ph.D., Designated Federal Officer, Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Room L616, Switzer Building, 330 C St. SW, Washington, DC 20201. Phone: 202-746-1512; Email: CARB@hhs.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria (PACCARB), established by Executive Order 13676, is continued by Section 505 of Public Law 116-22, the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act of 2019 (PAHPAIA). Activities and duties of the Advisory Council are governed by the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), Public Law 92-463, as amended (5 U.S.C. App.), which sets forth standards for the formation and use of federal advisory committees.

The PACCARB shall advise and provide information and recommendations to the Secretary regarding programs and policies intended to reduce or combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria that may present a public health threat and improve capabilities to prevent, diagnose, mitigate, or treat such resistance. The PACCARB shall function solely for advisory purposes.

Such advice, information, and recommendations may be related to improving: The effectiveness of antibiotics; research and advanced research on, and the development of, improved and innovative methods for combating or reducing antibiotic resistance, including new treatments, rapid point-of-care diagnostics, alternatives to antibiotics, including alternatives to animal antibiotics, and antimicrobial stewardship activities; surveillance of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections, including publicly available and up-to-date information on resistance to antibiotics; education for health care providers and the public with respect to up-to-date information on antibiotic resistance and ways to reduce or combat such resistance to antibiotics related to humans and animals; methods to prevent or reduce the transmission of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections; including stewardship programs; and coordination with respect to international efforts in order to inform and advance the United States capabilities to combat antibiotic resistance.

The February 10-11, 2021, public meeting will be dedicated to presentations from two new working groups of the PACCARB, one on Inter-Professional Education and another on Antibiotics Access and Use, which were formed in response to a task letter from the Assistant Secretary for Health. The two-day virtual public meeting will also include an update on the impact of COVID-19 on antimicrobial resistance. The meeting agenda will be posted on the PACCARB website at http:// www.hhs.gov/paccarb when it has been finalized. All agenda items are tentative and subject to change.

Instructions regarding attending this meeting virtually will be posted one week prior to the meeting at: http://www.hhs.gov/paccarb.

Members of the public will have the opportunity to provide comments prior to the public meeting by emailing CARB@hhs.gov. Public comments should be sent in by midnight February 7, 2021 and should be limited to no more than one page. All public comments received prior to February 7, 2021, will be provided to Advisory Council members and will be acknowledged during the public teleconference.