UKHSA Reports Over 400 Weekly Antibiotic-Resistant Infections in 2025

What was announced

On 12 November 2026, the UK Health Security Agency released data from the English surveillance programme for antimicrobial utilisation and resistance report. The report recorded 21,129 cases of antibiotic-resistant bacteraemia in 2025. This equals an average of 406 cases per week and is up 16.8% from 18,086 cases in 2019.

Although cases rose from 20,468 in 2024, the rate of increase slowed to 3.2%, compared to a 9.3% rise between 2023 and 2024. Total NHS antibiotic consumption fell 10.7% between 2019 and 2025, dropping from 17.8 to 15.9 defined daily doses per 1,000 inhabitants per day. Private pharmacy antibiotic prescriptions dropped 20.8% between 2024 and 2025. Estimated deaths linked to resistant Gram-negative bacteraemia stood at 2,318 in 2025, compared to 2,399 in 2024.

What it means

Infection risks vary significantly across age groups, geographic areas, and demographics. Older adults experience the highest proportion of cases. People aged over 45 accounted for 89.3% of resistant infections in 2025, with those over 74 making up 49.7% of all cases.

Deprivation and ethnicity also correspond with broad differences in rates. Residents in the most deprived areas had a 44.4 per 100,000 infection rate, which is 44.2% higher than the rate in the least deprived areas. Among ethnic groups, 42.4% of bacteraemia episodes were resistant in Asian or Asian British groups, 32.8% in Black or Black British groups, and 20.7% in White groups. Local NHS Integrated Care Boards reported rates ranging from 27.4 per 100,000 in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland to 63.3 per 100,000 in North West London.

What the announcement does not tell us

The announcement does not state the specific reasons behind the disparities across ethnic groups, regional care boards, or income levels. It notes that the UK Health Security Agency is working with partners to investigate these variations.

The release also lacks a final figure for the exact hospital costs caused directly by antibiotic resistance. While it estimates that 53,400 Gram-negative bloodstream infection admissions cost NHS hospitals roughly £800 million between 2023 and 2024, work remains ongoing to separate general infection costs from those specifically driven by resistant bacteria.