By: Brittaney Bethea, NACDD Communications Consultant, Cardiovascular Health Team

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the world’s number one killer, resulting in 18.6 million deaths a year. At the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors on #WorldHeartDay, we remain fiercely committed to supporting state and territorial work to advance equity in cardiovascular disease prevention and control. Below are a few areas of action NACDD commits to promote heart health.

Advancing Equity

Driven by our understanding that it is critical to recognize, assess, and counteract sources of disparities in diagnosis and management of hypertension, NACDD’s Cardiovascular Health (CVH) Initiative supports State and Territorial Health Departments in implementing population health improvement strategies in healthcare systems, while providing opportunities for peer-to-peer learning and partnerships that amplify evidence-based prevention approaches.

Peer-to-Peer Learning

NACDD uniquely convenes a CVH Council, a virtual network of all CDC-funded state and local partners addressing cardiovascular disease prevention and management. The CVH Council supports training, identifies learning opportunities, and facilitates meaningful connections among State and Local Health Departments.

Partnerships

NACDD has been a proud national partner of Million Hearts ^® since 2012 and works with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and many other partners with a goal to prevent one million heart attacks and strokes within the next five years. You can find and share materials for patients and individuals in your community from these Million Hearts^® and CDC Foundation campaigns:

• “Start Small. Live Big.” This campaign encourages adults 55 and older, to get back on track with the small steps—like scheduling their medical appointments, getting active, and eating healthy—so they can get back to living big.
  
  
• “Live to the Beat.” This campaign focuses on empowering Black adults to pursue heart-healthy lifestyles on their own terms—to find what works best individually and consistently— as they live to their own beat.

Today, on World Heart Day and every day, we encourage you to explore ways to get involved and remember beating cardiovascular disease is something that matters to every beating heart.