More than 20 biopharmaceutical companies have announced their participation in the AMR Action Fund to support research of new antibiotics to address the rise of antibiotic-resistant infections, also called antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with a goal of raising $1 billion. The partnership aims to bring two to four new antibiotics to market by 2030.

The AMR Action Fund is an initiative of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA), a global association of research-based biopharmaceutical companies and regional and national associations. Through the AMR Action Fund, pharmaceutical companies will partner with philanthropies, development banks, and multilateral organizations to accelerate antibiotic development.

The following biopharmaceutical companies and foundations are supporting the AMR Action Fund: Almirall, Amgen, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Chugai, Daiichi Sankyo, Eisai, Eli Lilly and Company, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, LEO Pharma, Lundbeck, Menarini, Merck & Co., Merck KGaA, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, Pfizer, Roche, Shionogi, Takeda, Teva, and UCB.

Certain companies have disclosed their contributions. Pfizer reports it will contribute $100 million to the AMR Action Fund, Boehringer Ingelheim $50 million, and Daiichi Sankyo $20 million.

The AMR Action Fund will focus on several activities: (1) investment in smaller biotech companies focused on developing antibacterial treatments that address high-priority public health needs; (2) technical support to portfolio companies by providing access to the resources of large biopharmaceutical companies to strengthen antibiotic development and support access and appropriate use of antibiotics; and (3) bringing together an alliance of industry and non-industry stakeholders, including philanthropies, development banks, and multilateral organizations, and help encourage governments to create market conditions that enable sustainable investment in the antibiotic pipeline.

The AMR Action Fund expects to invest more than $1 billion with the support of future partners into a portfolio of companies to address the funding gap for financing of antibiotic development. The fund is expected to be operational during the fourth quarter of 2020.

Source: The EFPIA, the IFPMA, Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Daiichi Sankyo.