PSAT Reading Question 590: Answer and Explanation

Question: 590

Which of the following is a major concern of the passage's author?

• A. That doctors will lose the capacity to treat bacterial infections
• B. That patients will overdose on their antibiotic prescriptions
• C. That MRSA will lose its prominence in the medical community
• D. That Western medicine will not be open to alternative approaches

Correct Answer: A

Explanation:

(A) Lines 76–80 offer the best evidence of the author's initial reference to the risk of losing "the capacity to treat bacterial infections." In the closing lines, the author then advocates for various ways to promote proper usage of antibiotics so that infections do not mutate into untreatable strains. There is no reference to "overdose," as in choice (B). The passage does mention MRSA but makes no mention of it losing prominence, as stated in choice (C). The first paragraph speaks of alternative medicine in the Far East. However, it is not a major concern of the author that the Western world will not embrace these alternatives, as stated in choice (D).