In yesterday’s post analyzing the Food and Drug Administration’s report on sales of antibiotics for use on farms in 2014, I noted that almost 99 percent of the antibiotics sold for agricultural use are sold over the counter, that is, without a prescription.

The FDA is attempting to change this, via an updated rule called the Veterinary Feed Directive; once that rule is finalized, livestock producers should only be able to obtain antibiotics once they have an “order” from a veterinarian. The goal here is to build more accountability into antibiotics purchase and use, because any misuse creates the possibility of resistance; and there is more use of antibiotics in agriculture, by sheer volume, than in human medicine.

As often happens when