Cardiovascular Health
Heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of death, disability and healthcare costs in our nation today. It accounts for approximately 1 in 4 deaths in the United States, is the leading cause of health disparities, and contributes almost a billion dollars a day annually in medical costs.[ 1 ]
While much of this is preventable, several local and national initiatives have been launched to help alleviate the burden of cardiovascular disease. Local health departments (LHDs) play a critical role in identifying local-level strategies to advance policy, systems, and environmental changes to reduce the risk factors for cardiovascular disease, as well as reduce health disparities through community and health system interventions.
NACCHO supports local health departments identify evidence-based prevention strategies, information and resources to advance local practice and to educate the public on the importance of preventing heart attack and stroke in the United States.
NACCHO is a member of the Million Hearts®Collaborative and partners with CDC's Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention to lead the Cardiovascular Health Community of Practice (CoP). Members of the CoP learn and share through targeted webinars, resources, and technical assistance activities focused on cardiovascular health. Members are also able to connect with national partners, subject matter experts and other municipalities doing similar work.
To join the Cardiovascular Health CoP, please contact us at chronicdisease@naccho.org.
See our toolkit of resources to support local health departments' policy and program efforts to improve community-level cardiovascular health.
For any questions or requests to submit materials that could help other local health departments, please contact us at chronicdisease@naccho.org.
NACCHO's Cardiovascular Health Community of Practice: Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention, Detection, and Control in Local Health Departments assessment serves to inform of the facilitators, challenges, lessons learned, and resource needs of local health departments that are engaged in cardiovascular disease prevention work.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) teamed up with NACCHO to develop the new Million Hearts® in Municipalities Toolkit, a tool to help city, county, state, and regional partners implement Million Hearts® at the local level. Partners are encouraged to use one or more of the modules to address capacity needs related to goal-setting, partnerships, communications, and evaluation and monitoring progress. Each module includes a list of online resources that may be used to inform program design and implementation.
View our webinar recordings below.
Listen to our podcast recordings below.
The following organizations have collaborated with NACCHO to prevent cardiovascular disease in communities throughout the United States.
Advancing Health Equity in Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Efforts
- Franklin County Public Health and the American Heart Association in Columbus, OH
- Ross County Health District at Chillicothe, OH
- Unlimited Potential in Phoenix, AZ
- UI Health Mile Square Health Center at the University of Illinois, Chicago, IL
Cardiovascular Health CoP Success Stories
- Improving a Community’s Cardiovascular Health Through Policy Change
- Improving Hypertension Rates Among African Americans in San Francisco
- Leveraging Partnerships to Improve Heart Health in Los Angeles
Million Hearts® in Municipalities Success Stories
- Albany County, NY: Million Hearts® in Municipalities on the Move: Complete Streets Collaboration
- Albany County, NY: Tobacco Cessation in a Mental Health Clinic
- Bell County, TX: Leveraging Social Media for Tobacco Cessation Education
- Boston Public Health Commission Partners with Barbershops to Improve Hypertension Control for Black Men
- Douglas County, NE: Faith-Based Community Adopts Church Policies to Battle Cardiovascular Disease
- Maricopa County, AZ: Using Community Health Workers to Improve Heart Health and Build Community Capacity in Public Housing
- Marion County, IN: Improving Hypertension Control Through a Community-Based Blood Pressure Self-Monitoring Program
The following policy statements show NACCHO's continual support for cardiovascular health in the United States.
If you have a resource you’d like to share, questions to ask, or you’d like to learn more and be part of the conversation around cardiovascular health, please complete the following form.