Representatives of more than 150 health care organizations, medical schools, pharmaceutical companies federal health agencies and food-production interests will meet at the White House today for a day-long “Forum on Antibiotic Stewardship,” the first of its kind. The Forum is a day-long meeting, to be held mostly out of the public eye,  in which the Obama Administration plans to press the companies and organizations to commit to plans to reduce and conserve antibiotic use, in order to slow down the advance of antibiotic resistance.

Putting its own marker on the table, the White House announced this morning that it is directing federal departments to begin purchasing meat and poultry raised with what they called “responsible antibiotic use,” a term that is going