A bill introduced in late June by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., would require Kings County dairy farmers to prove that they are using antibiotics only when the animals are actually sick, not to ward off potential illness or to make the animals gain weight.

The senator is concerned that administering too many antibiotics to livestock could help create microbes that are resistant to multiple types of antibiotics.

The Hanford Sentinel reports that there’s plenty of skepticism about whether Feinstein’s bill is justified:

Kings County Health Officer Michael Mac Lean noted that antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria are a growing problem among humans, but he said he wasn’t aware of any study linking that to the use of antibiotics in livestock animals.

“The general principle is, we are moving toward a place as a society, that many organisms we used to be able to treat, we are no longer able to treat,” he said. “We need to cut back on the amount we are using in humans.”

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Another quote from the article said:

“I personally haven’t heard of any [dairy operators] using antibiotics as a prophylactic,” said Hanford dairy operator Joe Machado. “It’s just another case of big brother telling us how to run our businesses.”

According to Feinstein's website, The Preventing Antibiotic Resistance Act of 2013 :

  • Directs the FDA to prohibit the use of antibiotics in ways that accelerate antibiotic resistance
  • Requires drug companies and producers to demonstrate they are using antibiotics to treat clinically diagnosable diseases – not just to fatten their livestock
  • Applies restrictions to only the limited number of antibiotics that are critical to human health. Any drug not used in human medicine is left untouched by this legislation
  • Preserves the ability of farmers to use all available antibiotics to treat sick animals. If a veterinarian identifies a sick animal, or a herd of animals that are likely to become sick, there are no restrictions on what drugs can be used

Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine), Jack Reed (D-R.I), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) are co-sponsors of the legislation. PD

—Compiled from various sources