Antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections will remain an extremely serious health-security and economic threat for the United States—and the world—unless steps are taken to curb them. This thesis focuses on antibiotic use in agriculture and potential methods to slow resistance. By examining existing U.S. policies at the national and state level as well as policies in Denmark and the Netherlands, this research finds that the European countries have reduced antibiotic use and decreased resistant organisms present in food animals. This thesis recommends implementing a multifaceted policy package beginning with the creation of an enhanced, more integrated surveillance system, then enacting antibiotic-use reduction targets, prohibiting the use of antibiotics in healthy animals and requiring veterinarians to examine animals before prescribing them antibiotics for disease prevention. The United States must implement more policies that respond to this global threat to preserve medically important antibiotics that protect the health and safety of people and animals. The homeland security enterprise should prioritize antibiotic resistance as a threat and work collaboratively to implement strategies to mitigate it.
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