CVD Prevention

Last Wednesday, Health Education was in the spotlight at a legislative breakfast co-hosted by the American Heart Association and the Buckeye Healthy Schools Alliance.  The day started with informal conversations regarding the need for state adopted health education standards.  Following a heart healthy breakfast, legislators and staff were given the opportunity to have their questions answered by a group of experts on the topic.  Special thanks to Mary Chace, Judy Jagger-Mescher, Joe Dake and Heather Vilvens!

Currently, Representatives Vernon Sykes and Lynn Wachtmann are seeking other legislators to join them as co-sponsors.  Each also spoke at the event and discussed their support.  They also urged their colleagues to support the pending legislation.

Want to know more about Health Education standards?  Click through to learn more or Find Us on Facebook for regular updates.  To support our request for co-sponsors, visit the Action Center and send your message today.

Sarah Noonan Delaware

Sarah Noonan, Deputy Director of Westside Family Healthcare, began selflessly and enthusiastically lending her expertise to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association in 2010, when she joined the DE Policy and Advocacy Committee. She has since become an indispensable part of our heart-health policy efforts in the First State.
 
Sarah has participated in Delaware Advocacy Day, helping to promote increased physical activity for elementary school children, and bike trail and pedestrian investments that enhance active transportation opportunities across Delaware. In addition, Sarah provides leadership to the Healthy Kids Delaware Steering Committee, a coalition that advances the interests of children in Delaware.

Sarah was recognized with the 2010 Betsey K. Cooke Advocacy MVP Award, given by the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) for her work to advance the interests of federally qualified health centers and their patients during the negotiation of the nation’s landmark health reform law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA).

In her free time, Sarah enjoys running to stay healthy and has organized and led Westside’s 5k since its inception. She and her new husband, Brian Davis, share a home in Wilmington with their two dogs MacGyver and Miles.

Sarah exemplifies what great advocacy for patients and community health across Delaware can achieve. Thank you for being a terrific health advocate, Sarah!

I am sitting here in the Law and Legislative Reference Library on the second floor of the State House.  I might as well bring in pictures of my daughter and a plant or two.  I spend more time here than I do at the office.  So does my friend Hilary (sitting across from me as usual).  She is the Government Relations Director for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.  We have been here working together to stem the tide of misinformation from the tobacco industry (and their proxies) at the state house.  Luckily, they trot out the same old arguments every time.  Unluckily, there are a dozen of them here today and only two of us.  That is why we need help from YTC advocates.   Your voices drown out the lies with real stories of the devastation from tobacco. 

Tobacco is terrible for the heart. Approximately 128,000 Americans die from cardiovascular diseases caused by tobacco smoke each year.  The chemicals in tobacco smoke damage the function of your heart and harm your blood cells.  Tobacco smoke leads to coronary heart disease which in turn can lead to heart attack, heart failure, arrhythmias, stroke and even death. Smokers have twice the heart attack risk of non-smokers.  

It is also important to note that smokeless tobacco has also been linked to greater incidence of fatal heart attacks and strokes. The bottom line is that no tobacco product is safe to use and all should be taxed equally. Maine’s unfair tax laws allow some tobacco products to cheap and readily accessible to youth.

When I started working in public health just over a decade ago, products like Snus, Orbs, Sticks, and strawberry cigars that mirror lip gloss were not on our radar screen.  However, that was a time when, nationally, there was a big push to raise the excise tax on cigarettes, ban indoor smoking and the agreement between Maine (and 46 other states) and big tobacco banned “Joe Camel” and the more egregious youth marketing.  The tobacco industry had to get creative and more subtle.  They are very bright people with the money to hire the best.  They knew that they needed a shift in strategy.  This led to a mushrooming of new products designed not only to appeal to youth, but also to circumvent cigarette tax and smoke-free laws. 

It is our job to stop them from finding those “replacement smokers” in our middle and high schools.  The best way to do that?  Raise the price of tobacco. 

Let’s get to work. 

Head back to the YTC home page and take action today.

Becky.smith@heart.org  207-523-3007

Smoking remains the number 1 preventable cause of death in New Jersey and throughout the U.S.  Yet, the State of New Jersey eliminated funding for it's Comprehensive Tobacco Control Program, which funded tobacco prevention and cessation efforts around the state.  The elimination of funding places NJ at 50 out of 50 states for funding tobacco control.

The American Heart Association is advocating for the passage of A2772/S1887, which would create tax parity between cigarettes and other tobacco products, such as cigars.  It is a little known fact that tobacco products other than cigarettes are taxed at a much lower rate than cigarettes, making them more attractive, especially to children.  This bill is expected to generate about $25 million in revenue which would be dedicated to tobacco control in New Jersey.

It’s a scary number that leads to even scarier disease and death. But the good news is that we have a proven solution.  Kids are particular vulnerable to price increases.  By raising the state cigarette tax by just .80 cents we can prevent kids from a lifetime of addiction.  And the good news gets even better. If we use the money raised by the increase on proven public health measures like health care access, cessation, prevention and education programs we can save even more lives. It’s a simple and proven solution.   Click here to take action today! 

 Let us know what you think by replying to this blog? Is 80 cents worth it?

It’s a scary number that leads to even scarier disease and death. But the good news is that we have a proven solution.  Kids are particular vulnerable to price increases.  By raising the state cigarette tax by just 95 cents, bringing us in line with neighboring states like New York, we can prevent kids from a lifetime of addiction.  And the good news gets even better. If we use the money raised by the increase on proven public health measures like cessation, prevention and education programs we can save even more lives. It’s a simple and proven solution. But we need your help.  They are making decisions in Hartford now and we need them to hear from you.   Click here to take action today! 

Let us know what you think by replying to this blog? Is 95 cents worth it?

Need more proof. Check out these stats:

Smoking-caused health care cost in CT per pack of cigarettes sold = $14.30. Current state cigarette tax = $3.40 per pack. Wow.  That puts .95 cents in perspective.

Annual health care expenditures in Connecticut directly caused by tobacco use:  $1.63 billion

Smoking-caused state Medicaid program spending each year:  $430 million

New Annual Revenue from Increasing the Cigarette Tax Rate by 95 Cents Per Pack:  $50.68 million. It's a step in the rigth direction.

In early April, a fantastic group of Ohioans participated in the 2013 You’re the Cure on the Hill in Washington, D.C. We couldn’t be more proud of the excellent representation from the Buckeye State!

Throughout the day, eleven Ohio constituents participated in eight meetings with lawmakers and/or their staff members. They joined nearly 300 participants from across the country. While this event was slightly smaller than in years past, the effort was focused on key members, who serve in leadership or on critical committees.

This year, advocates focused on three key asks:

1. Restore National Institute of Health, reduced by the March 2013 sequester, and appropriate $32 billion in 2014 to get NIH “back on track” relative to pre-sequester funding levels (adjusted to keep pace with inflation.)
2. Allocate to the Million Hearts Campaign (from previously appropriated prevention fund dollars) to support an education campaign targeted at the 36 million Americans who have uncontrolled high blood pressure.
3. And, a more personal ask, Know Your Numbers for blood pressure.

The first day of the event, participants attended the Rally for Medical Research. They joined advocates from other health advocacy groups like cancer, diabetes and AIDs – all of which feel the positive impact of NIH research funding. An estimated 10,000 people joined the rally, which was moderated by Cokie Roberts and was live streamed on YouTube.

On Tuesday, everyone hit the Hill to spread the message. Although all of the meetings were critical, a small group of constituents ended the day in a face to face meeting with Speaker Boehner to discuss the importance of NIH funding. Way to go!

To view photos of the advocates in action, visit the Ohio Facebook page or the national You’re the Cure page. 

Against the backdrop of Washington, DC’s famous cherry blossoms, 300 You’re the Cure advocates joined together in our nation’s capital in April to deliver a strong message to Congress: Invest in our health!  Here are just a few of the highlights of You’re the Cure on the Hill 2013 activities…

We rallied for medical research!  Thousands of advocates from the medical research community came together on April 8^th to make some noise about the need for Congress to prioritize our nation’s investment in research.  And You’re the Cure advocates were in on all of the action! 

Juddson Rupp from North Carolina and Amy Edmunds from South Carolina were two of the featured survivor-speakers that joined journalist Cokie Roberts, Representative Chris Van Hollen (MD-8), Representative Rosa DeLauro (CT-3), and others on stage to deliver the message and inspire the crowd. 

And what an active crowd it was!  You’re the Cure advocates joined in the cheers of “More Progress! More Hope!  More Life!”, as they held-up big red hearts with the names of over 6,000 of their fellow advocates from across the country who pledged their support for medical research funding. 

Check out some more great pictures from the Rally for Medical Research!

We turned Capitol Hill Red!  The enthusiasm from the rally spilled over into our day on Capitol Hill on April 9^th.  As heart disease and stroke survivors, caregivers, researchers, and medical professionals, each advocate had an important story and perspective to share with their Members of Congress, as we asked lawmakers to restore funding for the National Institutes of Health and support the Million Hearts initiative.   

Dressed in red, advocates met with 252 congressional offices in the course of one day!  And their visits came at a critical time, with legislators determining their funding priorities for the coming year. 

See your fellow advocates in action with our nation’s decision-makers on Capitol Hill!

We honored our 2013 Advocates of the Year!  At the local, state, and federal level, You’re the Cure advocates across the country work year after year to advance public policies that help build healthier communities and healthier lives free of heart disease and stroke.  So, we were proud to recognize four of these outstanding individuals as our 2013 Advocates of the Year!  Join us in congratulating:

Dr. William Weintraub (PA): Science-Advocate of the Year

Lee Storrow (NC): Volunteer-Advocate of the Year

Yolanda Dickerson (NC): Survivor-Advocate of the Year

Tommy Watson (VT): Youth-Advocate of the Year

Watch this great video to learn about their amazing work!

(Please visit the site to view this video)

April 7 was World Health Day and it was also the 65^th anniversary of the World Health Organization.  The theme for this year’s observance was high blood pressure, which was the first time a noncommunicable disease was the focus. 

High blood pressure is preventable and treatable.  However, it is still the leading risk factor for heart disease and stroke.  It is estimated nearly one in three adults worldwide have high blood pressure, but many are unaware. 

In addition, this same theme was carried through to You’re the Cure on the Hill 2013.  The Million Hearts campaign has the potential to raise awareness of high blood pressure and encourage Americans to Know Their Numbers and seek treatment.  By modeling a campaign similar to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) “Tips from a Former Smoker,” a similar impact could be made on high blood pressure.

While advocates were visiting Congressional offices, they encouraged members and aides to Know Their Own Numbers.  This is advice we should all take.  Do you Know Your Numbers?  Get screened now!

American Heart Association CEO Nancy Brown issued the following comment today on President Obama’s proposed fiscal year 2014 federal budget:

“While President Obama’s budget moves in the right direction by restoring the National Institutes of Health funding cut by the sequester, the administration’s proposal fails to fully account for medical research inflation and puts promising new research opportunities at risk. Over the past decade, the NIH has lost 20 percent of its purchasing power.

NIH-funded research is the best chance to find a cure for heart disease, stroke and other forms of cardiovascular disease that kill more than 800,000 Americans each year. Yet, stagnant federal support is holding back hope for the millions of Americans who suffer from these diseases.

The budget also includes an increase of $5 million for Million Hearts™, a national public-private initiative developed to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2017. Although we are pleased that these investments to support heart disease and stroke prevention activities were proposed for 2014, we are disappointed that the administration failed to commit additional resources from the prevention trust fund specifically targeting the 37 million adult Americans with uncontrolled high blood pressure. These people are four times more likely to die of a stroke and three times more likely to die of heart disease.  

Historically, nonprofits try to step in when government funding slows down. But the administration’s proposal to cut the charitable tax deduction could threaten the ability of these organizations to fill gaps left by cuts in prevention, research and social services programs. We urge the administration to increase, rather than reduce, incentives in the tax code that promote charitable giving – particularly when federal budgets are constrained.

The American Heart Association appreciates that this proposed budget does not undermine Medicare’s fundamental guarantee of health and financial security to millions of elderly and disabled Americans. Yet we believe more can be done to improve the health care Medicare beneficiaries receive and to further extend the program’s financial health. Moving forward, we will evaluate the savings recommended by the administration to see how they measure up to these goals, and continue to oppose any effort to shift costs to our most vulnerable beneficiaries suffering from heart disease and stroke. In the meantime, we are pleased that the budget protects Medicaid and recognizes that it is a lean and efficient program that serves as a needed safety net for millions of the most vulnerable patients.

Finally, we commend the president for recommending a tobacco tax increase. Study after study has shown that the fastest way to encourage people to quit smoking is to raise the cost of tobacco products. A federal increase will be a strong incentive for current smokers to have their last cigarette and prevent other people from ever taking up this deadly habit.”