Hospitals focus on antibiotic overuse as CMS prepares new mandate

Antibiotic resistance is a threat to national security. That's how President Barack Obama described the rapid growth of such resistance when he issued an executive order in September instructing HHS and the Defense and Agriculture departments to take aggressive action on the issue. A growing number of hospitals are instituting stewardship programs, which experts say not only improve patient outcomes, but also reduce costs and lengths of stay and lower antibiotic-resistance rates within hospitals. Those efforts have been bolstered by looming federal action that would make the inclusion of a stewardship program a requirement to participate in Medicare. In addition to improving patient outcomes, stewardship programs save money, in most cases more than paying for themselves, Srinivasan said. According to data cited by the CDC and the Infectious Diseases Society of America, a comprehensive antibiotic stewardship program can reduce antibiotic use by 22% to 36%, with annual savings of $200,000 to $900,000. “It's a win across the board,” Srinivasan said. Officials estimate that roughly half of the nation's hospitals have some kind of antibiotic stewardship program. http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20141220/MAGAZINE/312209980/hospitals-focus-on-antibiotic-overuse-as-cms-prepares-new-mandate