American Heart Association (AHA)

PUBLIC/CONSUMER EDUCATION INFORMING ALL AMERICANS ABOUT WAYS TO REDUCE THEIR RISK OF HEART DISEASE AND STROKE IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT OBJECTIVES OF THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION. IN 2022-23, THE ASSOCIATION'S PUBLIC EDUCATION EFFORTS PROVIDED MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH. PUBLIC/CONSUMER EDUCATION CONTINUED - THE AHA IGNITED THE NATION OF LIFESAVERS MOVEMENT WITH BUFFALO BILLS SAFETY AND CHASING M'S FOUNDER DAMAR HAMLIN AS the NATIONAL AMBASSADOR, TO TURN BYSTANDERS INTO LIFESAVERS THROUGH COMMUNITY CPR AND AED TRAINING EVENTS. - THE AMERICAN STROKE ASSOCIATION, A DIVISION OF THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION, UNVEILED A DIGITAL TOOL THAT ENGAGES USERS IN A SIMULATED STROKE EXPERIENCE. THE PURPOSE IS TO HELP PEOPLE RECOGNIZE THE WARNING SIGNS OF A STROKE AND TO ACT F.A.S.T. TO IMPROVE THE CHANCES OF SURVIVAL: FACE DROOPING, ARM WEAKNESS, SPEECH DIFFICULTIES, AND TIME TO CALL 911. A SELFIE FEATURE SHOWS USERS WHAT THEIR FACE MIGHT LOOK LIKE IF THEY WERE HAVING A STROKE. There is also AN INTERACTIVE GAME that HELPS THEM SPOT A STROKE IN OTHERS. - THE HEART-BRAIN CONNECTION IS THE IMPETUS FOR GETTING TO THE HEART OF STROKE, AN INITIATIVE TO PREVENT STROKES AND IMPROVE STROKE CARE. DEVELOPED BY THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION, HCA HEALTHCARE, INC. AND HCA HEALTHCARE FOUNDATION, THE INITIATIVE FOCUSES ON ACCREDITED CLINICAL TRAINING, COMMUNITY EDUCATION AS WELL AS DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT. - WITH WOMEN IN CARDIAC ARREST LESS LIKELY THAN MEN TO RECEIVE BYSTANDER CPR DUE TO UNFOUNDED FEARS AROUND CAUSING PHYSICAL HARM, THE AHA'S HEALTHCARE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS AND MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS TEAMS CREATED AN ANIMATED VIDEO DEMONSTRATING PROPER CPR TECHNIQUE.

Professional education research, advances in medicine, and guidelines for best practice are most useful when made available to scientists and healthcare professionals. The aha hosted more than a dozen scientific conferences including scientific sessions and the international stroke conference, as well as meetings focused on specialty areas. Each offered continuing medical education (cme) credits, which are also available through aha online learning programs. Professional education continued - the aha announced its rural health care outcomes accelerator to provide up to 700 rural hospitals with no-cost access to its get with the guidelines quality-improvement programs for coronary artery disease, Heart failure and stroke. Other accelerator features include a recognition program, professional education through the aha's lifelong learning center and opportunities to collaborate with clinical experts and thought leaders at special events. - to raise quality standards in the growing field of telehealth, the aha launched the certified professional by the American Heart Association - telehealth program, with a grant from the leona m. and harry b. helmsley charitable trust. The opportunity is open to licensed medical professionals who meet prerequisites. - the aha's healthcare business solutions team announced its new aha professional education hub, a science-based platform that supports skills development and improved patient outcomes with access to premium content in three inaugural portfolios: stroke, telehealth and health equity. - the American college of cardiology, the aha and the society for cardiovascular angiography and interventions jointly issued a clinical document outlining required competencies for interventional cardiology trainees. This is the first document to define the training requirements for the full breadth of interventional cardiology. - the aha and the all india institutes of medical sciences will train more than 150,000 students, community health care workers and others across india in hands-only cpr over the next three years. The train-the-trainer model is being replicated across bathinda, bhubaneswar and mangalagiri. - the aha's well-being works better platform helps business leaders support the health and well-being of their employees. The platform features a reimagined workforce well-being scorecard to help employers evaluate the culture of health within their organization, identify gaps and determine how their progress stacks up to their peers. Participating companies receive gold, silver or bronze recognition in forbes and benchmarking reports to identify areas of improvement.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION FUNDS SCIENTIFIC STUDIES SEEKING NEW DISCOVERIES RELATED TO CAUSES, PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF CARDIOVASCULAR AND CEREBROVASCULAR DISEASES. SINCE OUR FOUNDING IN 1924, WE'VE INVESTED MORE THAN $5 BILLION IN RESEARCH, MAKING US THE LARGEST PRIVATE, NOT-FOR-PROFIT FUNDER OF CARDIOVASCULAR AND CEREBROVASCULAR RESEARCH. RESEARCH SPENDING FOR FISCAL-YEAR 2022/23 WAS $183 MILLION, OR 18%, AND RESEARCH AWARDS FOR THE YEAR TOTALED $157.1 MILLION. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CONTINUED - IN COLLABORATION WITH THE ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, THE AHA LAUNCHED THE FOOD IS MEDICINE INITIATIVE (later renamed to Health Care by Food Initiative), WHICH AIMS TO PROVIDE LARGE-SCALE CLINICAL EVIDENCE FOR EXPANDING HEALTHY FOOD ACCESS AS A COVERED MEDICAL BENEFIT TO HELP PREVENT AND MANAGE CHRONIC DISEASE. PROGRESS SINCE THE 2022 ANNOUNCEMENT AT THE WHITE HOUSE CONFERENCE ON HUNGER, NUTRITION, AND HEALTH INCLUDES MOBILIZING $90 MILLION TOWARD A $250 MILLION COMMITMENT. - WITH PEOPLE LIVING IN RURAL AMERICA EXPERIENCING A 40% HIGHER RISK OF HEART DISEASE AND A 30% HIGHER RISK OF STROKE COMPARED TO THEIR URBAN COUNTERPARTS, THE AHA FUNDED $20 MILLION TO ESTABLISH THE HEALTH EQUITY RESEARCH NETWORK ON IMPROVING ACCESS TO CARE AND OTHER HEALTH INEQUITIES IN RURAL AMERICA. - MORTALITY RATES RELATED TO PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH ARE 2.6 TIMES HIGHER AMONG BLACK WOMEN COMPARED WITH WHITE WOMEN, PROMPTING THE AHA TO INVEST $20 MILLION TO LAUNCH THE HEALTH EQUITY RESEARCH NETWORK ON DISPARITIES IN MATERNAL-INFANT HEALTH OUTCOMES. - THE AHA ANNOUNCED A $4 MILLION GRANT TO ADD A SIXTH SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH CENTER TO ITS STRATEGICALLY FOCUSED RESEARCH NETWORK ON THE SCIENCE OF DIVERSITY IN CLINICAL TRIALS, BRINGING TOTAL FUNDING TO $24 MILLION. THE NEW CENTER, LED BY RESEARCHERS AT JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY AND MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY, IS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM CARE ACCESS AND THE BRIDGE INITIATIVE. - TO EXPLORE THE CAUSES OF CHRONIC STRESS AT THE MOLECULAR LEVEL AND ITS IMPACT ON HEART HEALTH, THE AHA FUNDED $15 MILLION TO ESTABLISH THE STRATEGICALLY FOCUSED RESEARCH NETWORK ON BIOLOGIC PATHWAYS OF CHRONIC PSYCHOSOCIAL STRESSORS ON CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH. - AS PART OF ITS SECOND CENTURY OF SCIENCE INITIATIVE, THE AHA AWARDED 11 GRANTS TOTALING $20 MILLION TO MORE THAN 100 SCIENTISTS RESEARCHING HEART DISEASE AND STROKE. THE FINANCIAL AWARDS, ANNOUNCED AS THE AHA PREPARES FOR ITS 100TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2024, WILL BE FUNDED THROUGH JUNE 30, 2026. - THE AHA COLLABORATED WITH NORTHWESTERN MEDICINE, THROUGH THE NIH-FUNDED RHYTHM EVALUATION FOR ANTICOAGULATION (REACT-AF) TRIAL, TO DETERMINE IF NOVEL STRATEGIES USING APPLE WATCH ARE AS EFFECTIVE AS STANDARD OF CARE FOR TREATING ATRIAL FIBRILLATION (AFIB). THE TRIAL WILL INCORPORATE THE USE OF AN APP ON APPLE WATCH TO MONITOR AFIB TO REDUCE PATIENTS' CONTINUOUS AND LIFELONG RELIANCE ON BLOOD-THINNING MEDICATION. - APPROXIMATELY 1 IN 5 AMERICANS HAS HIGH LEVELS OF LP(A) - A RISK FACTOR FOR ATHEROSCLEROSIS - BUT THERE ARE NO STANDARDS FOR DIAGNOSIS OR RISK ASSESSMENT, AND NO TARGETED TREATMENTS. THE AHA'S LP(A) DISCOVERY PROJECT, SUPPORTED BY NOVARTIS PHARMACEUTICALS CORPORATION, AIMS TO CHANGE THIS THROUGH A NEW SCREENING MEASURE AND QUALITY IMPROVEMENT INTERVENTIONS. THE PROJECT WILL ENGAGE THE SIX HEALTH SYSTEMS CURRENTLY INVOLVED IN THE AHA'S INTEGRATED ASCVD MANAGEMENT INITIATIVE PLUS 10 NEW SITES TO TEST AND PILOT IMPROVEMENTS.

COMMUNITY SERVICES - TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY-LED SOLUTIONS TO SOCIAL FACTORS NEGATIVELY IMPACTING HEALTH IN THE BAY AREA, THE AHA ALLOCATED $1.1 MILLION TO THE FOLLOWING ENTERPRISES WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM KAISER PERMANENTE AND THE ANNE WOJCICKI FOUNDATION: - FARMING HOPE IS A GARDEN-TO-TABLE JOB TRAINING NONPROFIT THAT WORKS WITH INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE OVERCOMING MAJOR BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT. - FIREBRAND IS A MISSION-BASED BAKERY THAT HIRES RETURNING CITIZENS AND FORMERLY HOMELESS INDIVIDUALS. - GROWING TOGETHER IS A NONPROFIT that PROMOTES HEALTHY SCHOOL COMMUNITIES THROUGH TEACHING GARDENS AND INCREASING ACCESS TO FRESH FOOD. - SABA GROCERS IS A NONPROFIT BUILDING A MORE EQUITABLE FOOD SYSTEM BY ACTIVATING SMALL, IMMIGRANT-OWNED CORNER STORES AS HEALTHY FOOD ACCESS POINTS. - SOBER SIDEKICK IS A DIGITAL COMPANY POWERING COMMUNITY-DRIVEN BEHAVIORAL CHANGE BASED ON THE CONCEPT THAT 'THE OPPOSITE OF ADDICTION IS CONNECTION.' - URBAN ED ACADEMY IS A BLACK-LED NONPROFIT WITH THE MISSION OF BUILDING EDUCATIONAL EQUITY THROUGH REPRESENTATIVE LEADERSHIP IN AND AROUND SCHOOLS. WITH THIS CYCLE OF FUNDING, THE AHA'S BERNARD J. TYSON IMPACT FUND HAS INVESTED A COLLECTIVE $2.48 MILLION ACROSS THE BAY AREA. - NEARLY THREE YEARS SINCE ITS LAUNCH TO IMPROVE HEALTH OUTCOMES IN BLACK, HISPANIC AND INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES, THE NATIONAL HYPERTENSION CONTROL INITIATIVE (NHCI) IS MAKING PROGRESS IN ACHIEVING THE GOAL OF SUSTAINED OPTIMAL BLOOD PRESSURE FOR PATIENTS IN 350 FEDERALLY QUALIFIED COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS. CREATED BY THE AHA WITH SUPPORT FROM THE OFFICE OF MINORITY HEALTH AND THE HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION BUREAU OF PRIMARY HEALTH CARE, NHCI ADDRESSES HEALTH DISPARITIES EXPOSED BY THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. - IN NORTHWEST ARKANSAS, LIFESTYLE RX IS A COLLABORATION WITH THREE COMMUNITY CLINIC SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH SITES TO ADDRESS NUTRITION INSECURITY AND IMPROVE HEALTH OUTCOMES. PROVIDERS "PRESCRIBE" VOUCHERS FOR BOXES OF FRESH, LOCALLY GROWN FRUITS AND VEGETABLES ALONG WITH NUTRITIONAL COUNSELING AND HEART-HEALTHY RECIPES FROM THE AHA. EXERCISE RECOMMENDATIONS AND REFERRALS TO FEDERAL FOOD ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS, INCLUDING SNAP AND WIC, ROUND OUT THE OFFERINGS. - THE AHA'S NEW EMPOWERED INNOVATION ACADEMY PROVIDES TRAINING TOOLS FOR SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS AND HEALTH EQUITY INNOVATORS TO ADDRESS STRUCTURAL RACISM AND OTHER SOCIAL FACTORS IMPACTING HEALTH IN THEIR URBAN AND RURAL COMMUNITIES. TRAINING CONCEPTS INCLUDE PROTOTYPING, DESIGN, BRAND STORYTELLING AND MORE. THE EXPERIENCE PREPARES PARTICIPANTS FOR THE AHA'S REGIONAL AND NATIONAL EMPOWERED TO SERVE BUSINESS ACCELERATORS, WHICH HAVE AWARDED GRANTS TOTALING MORE THAN $1.1 MILLION. PUBLIC ADVOCACY - AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION ADVOCACY TEAM COMPLETED FISCAL YEAR 2022-23 WITH MORE THAN 200 POLICY WINS ACROSS EVERY LEVEL OF GOVERNMENT. AMONG THEM WERE 189 FIELD VICTORIES INCLUDING MEDICAID EXPANSION IN NORTH CAROLINA AND SOUTH DAKOTA, BRINGING THE TOTAL TO 40 STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. MEDICAID COVERAGE ALSO WAS EXTENDED FROM 60 DAYS TO 12 MONTHS FOR PREGNANT INDIVIDUALS, NOW ADOPTED IN MORE THAN 40 STATES. - ADVOCATES AND VOTERS SUPPORTED MANY STATE BALLOT INITIATIVES PROMOTING HEALTH ACROSS THE COUNTRY. PROPOSITION 3 ENDED THE SALE OF MOST FLAVORED TOBACCO PRODUCTS, INCLUDING MENTHOL, IN CALIFORNIA. NEW MEXICO VOTERS PASSED AMENDMENT I, INCREASING FUNDING FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND EDUCATION SERVICES. Additionally, PROPOSITIONS PROVIDING HEALTHY SCHOOL MEALS FOR ALL PUBLIC-SCHOOL STUDENTS PASSED IN COLORADO, MASSACHUSETTS, NEW YORK, MINNESOTA AND NEW MEXICO STATE LEGISLATURES. - IT WAS ALSO A BUSY YEAR IN WASHINGTON, D.C., WITH 22 FEDERAL SUCCESSES, INCLUDING: LEGACY IRA ACT - A MODIFIED VERSION OF THE LEGACY IRA ACT PASSED, ENHANCING AND EXPANDING OPPORTUNITIES FOR SENIORS TO SUPPORT CHARITIES USING THEIR RETIREMENT ASSETS. CAROL ACT - THE BIPARTISAN CARDIOVASCULAR ADVANCES IN RESEARCH AND OPPORTUNITIES LEGACY (CAROL) ACT BECAME LAW, PRIORITIZING RESEARCH ON VALVULAR HEART DISEASE, WHICH CLAIMS APPROXIMATELY 25,000 LIVES EACH YEAR. NO SURPRISES ACT - FINAL RULES IN THE NO SURPRISES ACT SOLIDIFIED PATIENT PROTECTIONS AGAINST UNEXPECTED MEDICAL BILLS RESULTING FROM PAYMENT DISPUTES BETWEEN PROVIDERS AND INSURERS. TELEHEALTH FLEXIBILITIES - CONGRESS PASSED A SPENDING BILL THAT EXTENDS PANDEMIC FLEXIBILITIES, ALLOWING MILLIONS OF PATIENTS TO BENEFIT FROM TELEHEALTH SERVICES THROUGH DECEMBER 2024. - UNDER A FEDERAL COURT ORDER, ALTRIA AND ITS PHILIP MORRIS USA SUBSIDIARY, R.J. REYNOLDS AND ITG BRANDS, POSTED SIGNS NEAR CIGARETTE DISPLAYS AT U.S. STORES ABOUT THE HEALTH RISKS OF SMOKING. THE SIGNS IMPLEMENT THE CORRECTIVE STATEMENTS THAT THESE TOBACCO COMPANIES WERE FIRST ORDERED TO MAKE IN 2006, WHEN U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE GLADYS KESSLER RULED THAT THEY HAD DECEIVED THE PUBLIC ABOUT THE HEALTH HAZARDS OF SMOKING FOR MORE THAN 50 YEARS. THE SIGNS MUST REMAIN UP THROUGH JUNE 30, 2025. - TOGETHER WITH CONGRESSWOMAN SHEILA CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK (D-FL) AND HER TEAM, THE AHA CONVENED SURVIVORS, POLICYMAKERS AND HEALTH ADVOCATES ON CAPITOL HILL TO SUPPORT THE ACCESS TO AEDS ACT. THE BIPARTISAN BILL WOULD ESTABLISH A GRANT FOR K-12 SCHOOLS TO DEVELOP CARDIAC EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANS THAT INCLUDE PURCHASE OF AUTOMATED EXTERNAL DEFIBRILLATORS (AEDS) AND CPR/AED TRAINING. - KENTUCKY GOV. ANDY BESHEAR SIGNED HOUSE BILL 331 - CO-SPONSORED BY REP. KIMBERLY MOSER AND REP. RUTH ANN PALUMBO - REQUIRING AN AED IN EVERY MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL BUILDING AND AT ALL SCHOOL-SPONSORED EVENTS. ADDITIONALLY, STAFF AND COACHES MUST RECEIVE AED TRAINING, AND ALL COACHES MUST BE CPR-CERTIFIED. - IRVING BECAME THE 106TH CITY IN TEXAS TO ENACT A COMPREHENSIVE SMOKE-FREE ORDINANCE THAT PROHIBITS SMOKING AND VAPING WHERE FOOD AND DRINKS ARE SERVED. THIS IS THE LATEST OF MORE THAN 80 COMPREHENSIVE SMOKE-FREE ORDINANCES THAT THE AHA'S SOUTHWEST POLICY TEAM HAS HELPED TO SECURE SINCE 2014.