The American Heart Association has secured awards from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for projects that will increase education and awareness of heart valve disease. The awards, totaling $8.4 million over the next three years, will allow the Association to invest in three areas including a heart disease and heart valve disease national communication campaign, heart valve disease education and awareness among health care professionals and women's heart valve disease education and awareness community capacity building. The grants were announced by the CDC's Public Health Infrastructure Center and the Division of Partnership Support after a competitive process.
"There is still so much we do not know about heart valve disease, which affects millions and kills approximately 25,000 people each year in the United States. For example, we need to know why women are less likely to be diagnosed, which results in worse health outcomes," said Eduardo Sanchez, M.D., M.P.H., FAAFP, chief medical officer for prevention at the American Heart Association, which is celebrating 100 years of lifesaving service as the world's leading voluntary organization focused on heart and brain health. "We are grateful to the CDC for its overall commitment to strengthening our national public health infrastructure and workforce, which will help everyone live longer, healthier lives."
These grants were authorized by the bipartisan Cardiovascular Advances in Research and Opportunities Legacy (CAROL) Act, which became law in December 2022. The bill was championed by Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.), who lost his wife, Eleanor "Carol" Leavell Barr, in 2022 to heart valve disease. The bill aims to prioritize research on valvular heart disease and create more awareness of the condition.
The Association's national campaigns will target patients, clinicians and public health leaders to increase awareness of heart valve disease risks, signs, symptoms and screening processes. The programs will include education for primary care physicians and tools for teaching their patients about the condition to ensure early identification and treatment of the disease. There will also be a significant focus on building capacity in communities to increase education and awareness about how heart valve disease disproportionately impacts women. These efforts will utilize the Association's Go Red for Women® platform, which is designed to increase women's heart health awareness and serve as a catalyst for change to improve the lives of women globally.
