Stat reported on Merck’s decision to withdraw the antibiotic Recarbio (imipenem, cilastatin, and relebactam) from the U.S. market, focusing on what the decision indicates about the viability of the U.S. market.
The article highlighted the work of the AMR Action Fund and quoted CEO Henry Skinner:
As it so happens, Merck is one of the original backers of the AMR Action Fund, a venture announced in 2020 to tackle antibiotic resistance by investing in small companies that can develop two to four novel antibiotics by 2030. The effort began with $1 billion in backing from several large drugmakers, the European Investment Bank, and Wellcome Trust.
So far, the fund has closed 14 investments and hopes to complete three or more by the end of next year, according to Henry Skinner, who has headed the venture since it began. He remains optimistic about the fund, which has so far invested about $300 million in various companies and is likely to be extended beyond 2030.
But Skinner expressed surprise about Merck’s decision, noting that “it took a lot of capital” to win U.S. regulatory approval for three key indications. “It’s striking,” he said. “It’s not a trivial amount of work or money they put into this. To my eye, they did all the right things and still, here we are.”
Read the full article here.
