Imagine walking into your local pharmacy without a prescription and purchasing a medication that traditionally required one after completing a questionnaire or similar screening process. Medications that previously depended on practitioner involvement could become more accessible if consumers successfully complete safeguards approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). That possibility is at the center of FDA’s Additional Condition for Nonprescription Use (ACNU) framework.

In a recent article, we examined the regulatory, litigation, and compliance developments surrounding GLP-1 therapies. As these medications have become more widely used, discussions across healthcare, research, and industry have expanded beyond their original role in diabetes treatment and weight management.

For decades, antibiotics have been one of modern medicine's greatest success stories. They transformed once-deadly infections into treatable conditions, making routine surgeries, organ transplants, cancer therapies, and intensive care medicine possible. But a growing threat is challenging that foundation: antimicrobial resistance (AMR).