In parts of sub-Saharan Africa, large randomized trials have shown that giving antibiotics like azithromycin to all children under five can reduce deaths dramatically.[1]
It’s a simple and cheap(ish) intervention, and one that would most likely not require additional funding from the EA community, as WHO has already implemented similar funding for infants.
However, it may be utility wise valuable or not valuable as it risks the growth of antibiotic resistance.
What is a rough estimate on the benefit vs. cost here?
I feel like it would be useful to see this as a case.,as I have few internal heuristics developed around the administration of antibiotics vs antibiotic resistance. Would this decrease the EV by 10%? by 50%? Be negative EV? Be negative EV over a longtermist horizon due to [expected] unexpected mutations?
If anyone is REALLY interested and writes up something significant there is a commision request from an [unaffliated] newsletter here,[2] which is what got me thinking about it.
