Effective antibiotics for the Swiss health care system: today and in the future

Antibiotics have been crucial in modern medicine since the early 20th century, but their widespread success and affordability have led to antibiotic resistance. This resistance erodes the effectiveness of antibiotics, making them difficult or impossible to treat. The Swiss Round Table on Antibiotics proposes increasing the availability of new antibiotics in Switzerland, particularly those needed to treat multidrug-resistant infections. The remuneration of antibiotics in Switzerland should represent a fair share of the income manufacturers need to generate globally to cover costs of research, development, manufacturing, and market maintenance. To reinvigorate antibiotic innovation, economic and regulatory incentives should be implemented throughout the pharmaceutical lifecycle. The Swiss Round Table on Antibiotics proposes pull incentives, which take effect after a new antibiotic has been granted marketing authorization. The subscription model is the most suitable for implementation in Switzerland. The study suggests that the subscription model can play a significant role in achieving the goal of promoting the availability of first-choice antibiotics.