CDC Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program Receives Additional Funds in FY 2010

American Heart Association advocates played a key role in urging their representatives to boost funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention program which helps states implement a Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program (HDSP), Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Registry, WISEWOMAN, and a broad surveillance system. In the FY 2010 Labor-HHS-Education omnibus bill, the HDSP program received $56 million or a 3.9 percent increase. CDC spends on average only 16 cents per person each year in the U.S. on heart disease and stroke prevention. Currently, CDC funds only 14 states for basic program implementation and 27 states and Washington, D.C. for capacity building (program planning). WISEWOMAN received $20 million or a 6.4 percent increase to provide increased resources to the 20 currently funded states. WISEWOMAN is a competitively awarded state-based heart disease and stroke screening and prevention program for uninsured and underinsured low-income women.

Advocates Help Increase Heart and Stroke Research Funding

You’re the Cure advocates also helped to increase funding for the NIH for FY 2010. In the omnibus Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill signed into law on December 16, 2009, the NIH received $31 billion or a 2.3 percent increase. Within that amount for the NIH, the two institutes of particular interest to the AHA, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute received a 2.7 percent increase and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke received a 2.3 percent increase over their FY 2009 funding levels. NHLBI and NINDS conduct the majority of NIH-supported heart and stroke research, respectively.

AHA Volunteer Leaders Brief National Press on Advocacy Priorities

Earlier this week top American Heart Association volunteers briefed members of the media about the Association’s main legislative priorities including objectives for health reform legislation and increased funding for medical research. National reporters attending had a great dialogue with volunteers and in many cases wrote articles for their respective publications noting the work of the American Heart Association.

What was discussed? The group talked about AHA’s objectives for healthcare reform which include effective prevention strategies, adequate and affordable coverage, and changes in treatment that would promote high quality and cost-effective care for heart disease and stroke patients. Research is another important way the association intends to address the cardiovascular crisis that lies ahead. In 2008, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) invested a mere 4% of its budget on heart research and less than 1% on stroke. These disproportionately low levels of funding for the No. 1 and No. 3 causes of death will severely limit efforts to find new ways to prevent heart disease and stroke and reduce death and disability. AHA’s President, Timothy Gardner told reporters that “We have a responsibility to urge lawmakers about the issues that concern our patients, particularly as they confront their health care challenges in this tough economic climate, time is not on our side.” To learn more about the briefing read the press release or check out the article in the Wall Street Journal.

A Message from AHA President Dr. Timothy Gardner

Dear You’re the Cure advocates:

I had the great privilege to attend the White House Summit on Health Reform and be involved in what appears to be a major effort at true Health Care Reform.

I had the opportunity to speak with several members of Congress, including Senators Specter, Hatch, Whitehouse and Mikulski, and other attendees, including Dr. Nancy Nielsen, President of the AMA and Dr. Jeff Harris, President of the American College of Physicians. The panelists included congressional leadership and representatives from the business, health care and labor communities. The discussion included most of the major challenges in healthcare reform including troublesome coverage issues, costs problems, prevention, comparative effectiveness research, individual and employer mandates, regional differences in care, perverse incentives, inadequate workforce and public versus private options for universal coverage.

President Obama closed the Summit with his pledge to work with all of those present to achieve a sustainable reform of our Health Care System.

Building healthier lives, free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke is the mission of the American Heart Association. The current healthcare crisis in the United States – which has been exacerbated by the economic situation - threatens this mission. Individuals who lack health care coverage – and those who are underinsured – are far less likely than their insured counterparts to receive appropriate and timely medical care and as a consequence, suffer worse medical outcomes.

The American Heart Association is positioned to be a strong leader in healthcare reform as we continue to strive for meaningful, affordable healthcare coverage for all. As patient advocates and supporters of quality healthcare, we believe that effective prevention strategies and the application of evidence-based guidelines must be key elements in order to improve quality of care and reduce costs.

Our advocacy work continues to be guided by AHA’s key principles for reform:

1. All residents of the United States should have meaningful, affordable and high quality health care coverage.
2. Preventive benefits should be an essential component of meaningful health care coverage, and incentives should be built into the health care system to promote appropriate preventive health strategies.
3. Race, gender and geographic disparities in health care must be eliminated.
4. Support of biomedical and health services research should be a national priority, and inflation-adjusted funding for the National Institutes of Health must be maintained and expanded.

Moving forward, the Association will continue to work with President Obama and Congressional leadership to craft proposals that will benefit all Americans including the more than 80 million individuals who suffer from heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases.

Timothy J. Gardner, M.D.
American Heart Association President

Stimulating America's Health

There is great news about the stimulus package coming out of Congress. It includes $10 billion in funding for the National Institutes of Health, money that will support research that could lead to cures for heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases. It also contains other provisions important to the American Heart Association including those that will promote health information technology, support prevention programs, extend health insurance for the unemployed, address health disparities and allow for the renovation of school facilities to help address our nation’s childhood obesity epidemic.

You’re the Cure advocates played a vital role in passing this important legislation by sending emails and calling their lawmakers throughout the legislative process. Thanks to you, we are one step closer to our mission of building healthier lives free of cardiovascular disease and stroke!

But, this is just the beginning of what we can accomplish through advocacy. The American Heart Association is working to achieve meaningful healthcare reform to address barriers to insurance and quality healthcare for heart and stroke patients. Learn more about our efforts and get involved at http://www.heartsforhealthcare.org/.