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Disclosure of Unavoidable Conflict of Interest

The conflict-of-interest policy of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (https://www.nationalacademies.org/about/institutional-policies-and-procedures/conflict-of-interest-policies-andprocedures) prohibits the appointment of an individual to a committee like the one that authored this Consensus Study Report if the individual has a conflict of interest that is relevant to the task to be performed. An exception to this prohibition is permitted only if the National Academies determine that the conflict is unavoidable and the conflict is promptly and publicly disclosed.

When the committee that authored this report was established a determination of whether there was a conflict of interest was made for each committee member given the individual’s circumstances and the task being undertaken by the committee. A determination that an individual has a conflict of interest is not an assessment of that individual’s actual behavior or character or ability to act objectively despite the conflicting interest.

Jennifer Dien Bard has a conflict of interest in relation to her service on the Committee on the Long-Term Health and Economic Effects of Antimicrobial Resistance in the United States because of research support provided to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles by diagnostic companies Luminex Corporation, BioFire Diagnostics, and Qiagen.

The National Academies determined that the experience and expertise of Dr. Dien Bard was needed for the committee to accomplish the task for which it was established. The National Academies could not find

another available individual with the equivalent experience and expertise who did not have a conflict of interest. Therefore, the National Academies concluded that the conflict was unavoidable and publicly disclosed it on its website (www.nationalacademies.org).