WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following two News-Herald reports of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) outbreaks in the Lake County schools, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced plans to reintroduce legislation to address antibiotic-resistant infections such as MRSA.

“Just a few short years ago, Ohio saw more than a dozen outbreaks of MRSA. These two new outbreaks of the infection in Northeast Ohio are a wake-up call that the issue of ‘superbugs’—antibiotic-resistant infections—has not gone away,” Brown said. “That’s why I plan, this Congress, to reintroduce legislation addressing antibiotic-resistant conditions. These infections are not only dangerous, but incredibly disruptive to the schools, hospitals, workplaces, and sports teams where they’re contracted.”

In the 110th Congress, Brown introduced the Strategies to Address Antimicrobial Resistance (STAAR) Act, legislation that would address antimicrobial resistance, with Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT). The STAAR Act would strengthen federal antimicrobial resistance surveillance, prevention and control, and research efforts, as well as enhances the collection of critical information on the use of antibiotics in humans and animals. It also would establish an Office of Antimicrobial Resistance (OAR) at the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to coordinate the activities of agencies involved in drug resistance.

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