The Washington Post on Sunday ran a front page story about the FDA's pending approval of a bovine antibiotic, despite grave concerns over antibiotic resistance. Public health organizations including the American Medical Association — as well as the agency's own advisory board — warned against approval of the drug which is an important "medicine of last resort" in treating otherwise "nearly invincible infections." If the antibiotic is used on cows, resistant bacterial strains will likely develop with the ability to infect the human population. The effectiveness of this appropriately powerful drug will be severely weakened. In the Post article, epidemiologist Edward Belongia chides the drug industry for exerting its influence: The industry says that 'until you show us a direct link to human mortality from the use of these drugs in animals, we don't think you should preclude their use.' But do we really want to drive more resistance genes into the human population? It's easy to open the barn door, but it's hard to close the door once it's open. As the case for reform at FDA grows, this example is merely another brick in the wall. FDA is once again showing its disregard for medical consensus and scientific integrity, and jeopardizing public health in the process.