Why does the author say individual doctors find it easier to prescribe?
Antibiotics are a shared resource in an unusual sense: each use by a patient can help that patient but contributes slightly to the spread of resistant bacteria that harm everyone. Individual doctors, under pressure from anxious parents, find it easier to prescribe than to refuse. Each prescription seems harmless; in aggregate they are not. This is a familiar pattern, and the usual remedy is to change incentives rather than to appeal to goodwill. Practices that audit and publish prescribing rates, patients who receive clear information about why a drug is not needed, and rapid tests that distinguish bacterial from viral infections can all reduce unnecessary use. Telling doctors to be more careful has been tried for decades and has not been enough.
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. They are under pressure from anxious parents and each prescription seems harmless
- Step 1: The passage cites pressure from anxious parents and says each prescription seems harmless.
- Step 2: No payments, ignorance, belief or legal duty are mentioned.
Answer
They are under pressure from anxious parents and each prescription seems harmless.
Why not the others: Payment, ignorance, belief about viruses and legal duty are not given by the author.
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