A steak with a side of antibiotics, please

As the health care debate rages across the country, a different kind of health issue is cropping up with livestock: the widespread use of antibiotics for non-therapeutic uses such as growth and disease prevention. And the possibility that it’s rendering those antibiotics less effective for people.

Washington Post writer Ezra Klein makes the point that we are encouraging the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria by eating animals that contain low doses of antibiotics. His argument is based in part on the startling statistic from a 2001 study conducted by the Union of Concerned Scientists: 70 percent of all the antibiotics used in the United States are used for animal production.

Klein talks to U.S. Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY), who is advocating for the passage of the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act of 2009. As she tells Klein: 

“The bill preserves the seven most effective classes of antibiotics for human use only. They can be used to treat sick animals, but they can’t be used to simply raise animals.”