2023 What Goals Does Million Hearts Aim To Achieve By 2022: Expert Tell You

Understanding the Million Hearts Initiative

The Million Hearts initiative was launched in 2011 to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2022.cardiovascular disease aims to reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, the leading causes of death in the United States. Million Hearts targets two key health metrics: reducing hypertension rates by 8 million and reducing LDL cholesterol by 14 million by 2017. The initiative brings together stakeholders like government agencies, health care providers, patient groups, and private organizations to achieve its ambitious goals.
More comprehensive information and care guidelines can be read here.

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Reducing Cardiovascular Disease Prevalence

One of the primary goals of the Million Hearts initiative is to reduce the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks, strokes and high blood pressure among Americans. The initiative aims to:

Lower the rate of high blood pressure by 20% from 101.2 million to 81 million by 2022. High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke, but many people are still undiagnosed or untreated.
Reduce average LDL cholesterol levels by 15 to 20 mg/dL from around 110 mg/dL to 95 mg/dL. High LDL cholesterol increases the risk of plaque buildup in the arteries.
Decrease smoking prevalence from 18% to 10% by 2022. Smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death and disease in the United States. Reducing smoking rates will help prevent cardiovascular disease.

The initiative set these quantitative goals to help focus efforts and track progress towards reducing the burden of heart disease and stroke. Progress is being made, with high blood pressure control rates increasing from 52% in 2011 to nearly 65%. But there is still work to be done, particularly regarding smoking rates and guidelines-recommended LDL cholesterol levels.

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Promoting Heart-Healthy Lifestyles

The Million Hearts initiative encourages Americans to adopt heart-healthy behaviors to help prevent cardiovascular disease. This includes:

Quitting smoking. Smoking is linked to higher risk of heart attacks, strokes, and blood vessel diseases. Quitting can improve heart health within days and significantly reduces long-term risks.
Eating a diet low in salt, saturated fat, and trans fat. A heart-healthy diet focuses on vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean protein, and low-fat dairy. Reducing sodium intake to less than 2,300 mg per day can lower blood pressure.
Increasing physical activity. The guidelinesrecommend at least 150 minutes of moderate activity per week. Regular exercise improves cholesterol levels, blood pressure, weight, and overall heart health.
Maintaining a healthy weight. Being overweight or obese increases the risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes – all risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Both moderate weight loss and preventing excess weight gain can make a difference.

To promote these behaviors, the Million Hearts initiative works with community groups, healthcare providers, employers, and others to implement programs, campaigns and policies. For example:

Healthcare practices have implemented smoking and weight management programs.
Employers have instituted on-site fitness centers, healthy food options in cafeterias, and incentives for participating in wellness programs.
Community groups have organized health fairs, cooking classes, and exercise groups to improve cardiovascular health.

By encouraging heart-healthy behaviors on a broad scale, the initiative aims to significantly reduce the burden of heart attacks and strokes.

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Enhancing Access to Quality Healthcare Services

The Million Hearts initiative aims to enhance access to high-quality preventive care and medical services for cardiovascular diseases. This is an important part of its goal to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2022. The initiative is working to:healthcare

Expand the use of health information technology like electronic health records and decision support tools. These tools can help providers identify at-risk patients, monitor health metrics, and ensure patients receive recommended guidelines-based care.
Improve care coordination between primary care providers, specialists, and community resources. Better coordination can help manage chronic conditions more effectively and reduce the gaps in care that contribute to poor outcomes.
Increase access to medications proven to reduce cardiovascular risk, like statins for cholesterol and blood pressure medications. Many patients still cannot afford or do not have insurance coverage for these drugs.
Expand the use of team-based care models. Care teams including nurses, pharmacists, nutritionists, health coaches and social workers can improve counseling, monitoring and support for lifestyle changes.
Adopt payment models that reward quality over volume of services. New payment models can incentivize providers to implement strategies that improve outcomes and lower costs in the long run.

The initiative promotes sharing of best practices and improvement strategies through its network of healthcare organizations, public health agencies, and private partners. With concerted action across the healthcare system, from patients to providers to payers, access to high-value cardiovascular care can be significantly improved to help meet the Million Hearts goals.

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More Helpful Guide

Frequently Asked Question

Which government organizations sponsor the Million Hearts initiative?

Million Hearts is co-led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

What are the goals of the Million Hearts initiative?

The goals of Million Hearts are to empower Americans to make healthy lifestyle choices, improve care for people with high blood pressure and high cholesterol, and eliminate health disparities.

How can clinicians better manage blood pressure according to Million Hearts?

Clinicians can better manage blood pressure according to Million Hearts by using team-based care, setting blood pressure goals, following treatment protocols, and using health IT tools.