CDC Reports Antimicrobial Resistance is Still an Urgent Threat

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) analyzed the U.S. burden of seven antimicrobial-resistant pathogens typically found in health care settings from 2021 through 2022. A new fact sheet shows that six bacterial antimicrobial-resistant hospital-onset infections increased by a combined 20% during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the pre-pandemic period, peaking in 2021, and remaining above pre-pandemic levels in 2022. 

In 2022, rates for all but one of these pathogens (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA) remain above pre-pandemic levels. In addition, the number of reported clinical cases of Candida auris (C. auris)—a type of yeast that can spread in health care facilities, is often resistant to antifungal medications, and causes severe illness — increased nearly five-fold from 2019 to 2022. visit CDC’s website for more information on antimicrobial resistance threats.