Merck Discontinues Recarbrio, Leaving Patients with Fewer Options for Drug-Resistant Infections

Merck has discontinued Recarbrio, an intravenous antibiotic used to treat serious hospital infections, in the United States. The company announced that supply of the drug would end on or near late September 2026. According to Merck, the decision was not related to safety or quality problems.

Recarbrio is reserved for patients with limited treatment options who have developed pneumonia while hospitalized or on a ventilator, as well as those with complicated urinary tract and abdominal infections. The FDA approved Recarbrio in 2019 for its primary indications and expanded the label to children in 2025.

Doctors still have other choices available for treating carbapenem-resistant infections. Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease physician at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security, noted that ceftazidime-avibactam, meropenem-vaborbactam, and cefiderocol remain effective options against KPC-producing bacteria.

The discontinuation of Recarbrio has raised concerns among medical professionals. Dr. Adalja described the clinical gap as 'immediate but narrow,' while Henry Skinner, CEO of the AMR Action Fund, expressed concern about the impact on pediatric patients. The PASTEUR Act, a bill that would provide fixed annual payments for new antibiotics regardless of usage, has been reintroduced in the Senate.