Question Period Note: Antimicrobial Resistance

Antimicrobial resistance has become a leading cause of death and has been declared a top global health threat by the World Health Organization. Coordinated ‘One Health’ action across the human and animal health sectors and the environment is needed to address the growing threat to Canadians and our healthcare system.

We made a commitment to take increased and expedited action to monitor, prevent, and mitigate the serious and growing threat of AMR and preserve the effectiveness of the antimicrobials Canadians rely upon every day.
On June 22, 2023, the Government of Canada released the Pan-Canadian Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (PCAP). Developed together with the provinces and territories, PCAP is a 5-year blueprint (2023-2027) for strengthening Canada’s collective AMR response using the One Health approach to accelerate efforts on combating AMR.
We have identified two main priorities that will have the greatest impact on tackling AMR: (1) securing access to new antimicrobials and antimicrobial alternatives for Canadians, and (2) preserving the effectiveness of existing and new antimicrobials. The Government of Canada is making progress in both areas.
Through Budget 2023, the Government committed additional funding to secure access to new antimicrobials that are currently not available in Canada. This funding will allow Canada to increase the number of antimicrobial drugs that prescribers can access to treat patients in an effective, efficient and safe manner.
Investments have also been made in research in areas such as antimicrobial discovery and alternatives and diagnostics.
Canada is also helping to fund broader global AMR innovation initiatives, as well as support domestic industry in their R&D efforts. For example, in May 2023, Canada announced a $6.3M investment in CARB-X, joining other AMR world leaders in a global non-profit partnership accelerating antibacterial products to address drug-resistant bacteria.
Additionally, in October 2022, Canada became one of the first global partners to contribute to SECURE, a newly created global initiative with a mission to expand equitable access to, life-saving antibiotics across countries and regions in need.
In parallel to securing access to antimicrobials, we are taking steps to preserve the effectiveness of the life-saving antimicrobials we currently have.
Through Budget 2021, the Government committed over $28 million over five years, beginning in 2021-22, to expand efforts in key areas of surveillance and monitoring, including integrating wastewater into our surveillance of antimicrobial usage.
Investing further in antimicrobial resistance efforts now will ensure that Canada addresses this growing threat in an impactful way to better protect Canadians.
IF PRESSED ON WORK BEING DONE BY GOVERNMENT SCIENTISTS TO ADDRESS THE URGENT PROBLEM OF ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
The Government of Canada is leveraging the research infrastructure and relationships that were established during the COVID-19 response to make progress on AMR.
Government of Canada scientists are working with partners to implement wastewater monitoring as a tool for better understanding antimicrobial use, applying pandemic lessons learned to the AMR response.
The Genomics Research and Development Initiative (GRDI) funds coordinated genomics research by federal scientists across 6 federal departments and agencies. Close to $10M in GRDI funding has been dedicated to improving our understanding of how AMR can spread across human, animal, and environmental sectors.
The GRDI AMR research takes a One Health approach to provide knowledge that will be used to identify hotspots and intervention points, and support evidence-based mitigation strategies.
The overriding goal is to preserve the effectiveness of the antimicrobials that Canadians rely on every day.
In May 2023, Canada announced a $6.3M investment in CARB-X, joining other AMR world leaders in a global non-profit partnership accelerating antibacterial products to address drug-resistant bacteria.

The antibiotics we rely on to treat common infections are becoming less effective, resulting in serious illness and death. 1 in 4 bacterial infections are resistant to the first line of antibiotic treatment. In Canada in 2018, it is estimated that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) resulted in 5,400 deaths, $1.4 billion in healthcare system costs, and a loss of $2 billion in GDP.
The Government of Canada, through Budget 2021, committed $28.6 million over five years, beginning in 2021-22, with $5.7 million per year ongoing, to PHAC, HC, and CFIA to support efforts to prevent the inappropriate use of antimicrobials and expand efforts to monitor the emergence of AMR in Canada. Through Budget 2023, the Government of Canada committed funding to encourage market entry and availability of antimicrobials in Canada.
Canada is also helping to fund broader global AMR innovation initiatives, as well as support domestic industry in their R&D efforts. For example, in May 2023, Canada announced a $6.3M investment in CARB-X, joining other AMR world leaders in a global non-profit partnership accelerating antibacterial products to address drug-resistant bacteria.
Additionally, in October 2022, Canada became one of the first global partners to contribute to SECURE, a newly created global initiative with a mission to expand equitable access to, life-saving antibiotics across countries and regions in need.
An AMR Task Force was created within PHAC to establish a clear focus for AMR work across federal departments and agencies.
In June 2023, the Government of Canada released the Pan-Canadian Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (PCAP), a 5-year blueprint (2023 - 2027) for strengthening Canada’s collective AMR response using the One Health approach.
Over the past five years, CIHR has invested over $138 million in AMR-related research to strengthen research in areas such as antimicrobial discovery, target identification, alternatives, diagnostics, surveillance, and stewardship. CIHR is a founding member and major funder of the Joint Programming Initiative on Antimicrobial Resistance (JPIAMR)—a collaboration of 28 member states aimed at coordinating research in AMR to achieve long-term reductions in resistance levels and better public health outcomes.
Health Canada continues to work with other federal partners to focus on enhancing animal health and wellness in order to reduce the reliance on routine use of antimicrobials in animals. Health Canada maintains a Pathogens of Interest List that serves to inform companies of the bacterial pathogens in most urgent need of innovative therapeutic products in Canada.

The World Health Organization declared antimicrobial resistance (AMR) a top 10 global public health issue and Canada needs to be prepared to face this threat.
A 2022 Lancet study revealed that AMR is now a leading cause of death worldwide – estimated at causing over 1.2 million deaths in 2019.
AMR is characterized by a decline in the effectiveness of antimicrobial drugs in treating an infection. In Canada, AMR is rising at an alarming rate, with 26% of infections already resistant to first-line antimicrobials.
Resistance can have far-reaching consequences since antimicrobial use in humans, animals, or the environment can impact the health of all three sectors, making it a “One Health” issue.
There is growing international attention (e.g., G7 and G20) on the urgent need to combat AMR. In 2023, G7 Leaders continued to highlight AMR. There will be a UN General Assembly High Level meeting on AMR in 2024.
In Canada, AMR was estimated to have caused 5,400 deaths, cost the healthcare system about $1.4 billion, and reduced GDP by $2 billion in 2018. These estimates were published in the Council of Canadian Academies’ Expert Panel on the Potential Socio-Economic Impacts of Antimicrobial Resistance in Canada.
Collective action across sectors and jurisdictions is essential to address AMR and to safeguard the effectiveness of antimicrobials, such as antibiotics, which are critical for modern-day medicine. They treat and prevent serious infections and are essential for routine and life-saving medical procedures.