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News / Headlines
Preventive Cardiology Experts: Governor Perry Can Save Thousands
of Lives, Reduce Healthcare Costs
The State of Texas is the first in the United States to mandate
healthcare providers to reimburse certain heart attack and stroke
preventive screening tests for early detection of hidden heart
disease through a healthcare bill. The bill, which passed out of the
Texas Legislature with 26 to 5 votes, is on its way to the Office of
Texas Governor Rick Perry.
Houston, Texas (PRWEB) May 28, 2009 -- Distinguished preventive
cardiologists and academic cardiovascular specialists from the
Society for Heart Attack Prevention and Eradication (SHAPE), a
leading non-profit organization advocating for early detection of
future heart attack victims, today estimated significant health
advances for Texans if Governor Rick Perry signs a preventive heart
screening bill into law. The bill passed by Texas lawmakers would
require reimbursement of up to $200 for certain approved screening
tests for men between ages 45 and 75, and women between ages 55 and
75, who are at intermediate risk of a heart attack according to
their Framingham Risk Score.
According to an analysis extrapolated from the SHAPE Task Force
Report (published in the American Journal of Cardiology July 2006),
the preventive screening of asymptomatic men and women could have
the following outcomes:
* Prevent more than 4,300 deaths from cardiovascular disease each
year in Texas.
* Reduce the history of heart attack- currently estimated to be 1.4
million - by as much as 25 percent in the Texas Population.
* Save approximately $1.6 billion in healthcare costs annually.
"The passage of the first preventive cardiovascular screening bill
is a great opportunity for Governor Rick Perry to help save the
lives of thousands of Texans whose hidden heart disease goes
undetected and hence untreated, partly because non-invasive
screening for hidden plaque in the arteries is not covered by
healthcare providers," said Dr. P.K. Shah, Director of Cardiology at
Cedars Sinai Heart Institute in Los Angeles, a principal member of
the SHAPE Task Force and an active member of the American Heart
Association. "It can open a new path in preventive cardiovascular
care, the implications of which go beyond Texas."
The passage of the first preventive cardiovascular screening bill is
a great opportunity for Governor Rick Perry to help save the lives
of thousands of Texans whose hidden heart disease goes undetected
and hence untreated, partly because non-invasive screening for
hidden plaque in the arteries is not covered by healthcare providers
"It can open a new path in preventive cardiovascular care, the
implications of which go beyond Texas."
"This is a monumental legislation that can become a bold milestone
in the history of eradicating heart attacks in decades to come"
"We are proud that Texas is poised to be the first to take this
pioneering step towards a true cardiovascular healthcare beyond the
existing cardiovascular sick-care"
"At one time, using imaging technologies, like mammography and
colonoscopy, to screen for cancer seemed like an impractical idea,
but after reimbursement approval, they have become part of everyday
medicine and have saved countless lives," said Dr. Harvey Hecht, a
prominent preventive cardiologist at the Lenox Hill Heart and
Vascular Institute in New York, who is also a member of the SHAPE
Task Force.
Heart disease has been the number one killer in the U.S. since 1902
(except during the pandemic flu of 1918). According to Texas
Department of State Health Services, 32% of all deaths in Texas are
caused by cardiovascular disease. In 2007, over 1,441,000 people in
Texas reported that they have had heart disease or stroke. With
increasing Hispanic population in Texas, obesity, diabetes and heart
disease is weighing on Texas more than other states.
"This is a monumental legislation that can become a bold milestone
in the history of eradicating heart attacks in decades to come,"
said Dr. Morteza Naghavi, founder of SHAPE, and Chairman of the
SHAPE Task Force who testified at the Texas House of Representative.
"We are proud that Texas is poised to be the first to take this
pioneering step towards a true cardiovascular healthcare beyond the
existing cardiovascular sick-care," added Naghavi, whose invention
at the University of Texas in Houston was funded by the State of
Texas Emerging Technology initiative for commercialization.
The Texas legislation is the first in the United States to mandate
the careful and responsible implementation of a comprehensive heart
attack risk assessment and reduction strategy. It closely follows
the SHAPE Guideline for identification of apparently healthy
individuals who have a high risk of a near future heart attack but
are unaware of their risk. Approved screening procedures include: 1)
the measurement of coronary artery calcium score (CACS) by CT; and
2) the measurement of carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and
plaque by ultrasonography.
These two non-invasive screening tests have proven by the National
Health Institute studies to be strong predictors of those who are
vulnerable to a heart attack or stroke.
About SHAPE
Originated from the Texas Medical Center in Houston, the Society for
Heart Attack Prevention and Eradication (SHAPE) is a non-profit
organization founded by Dr. Morteza Naghavi, a former faculty of the
Texas Heart Institute and the University of Texas in Houston. The
mission of SHAPE is to promote education and research related to
mechanism, prevention, detection, and treatment of heart attacks.
The organization is committed to raising public awareness about
recent revolutionary discoveries that opened exciting new avenues to
prevent heart attack. SHAPE's mission is to eradicate heart attacks
in the 21st century. Additional information is available on the
organization's Web site at
www.shapesociety.org or call 1-877-SHAPE11
About SHAPE Task Force
Chairman: Morteza Naghavi, M.D. Editorial Committee: Prediman K.
Shah, M.D. (Chief); (alphabetic order): Raymond Bahr, M.D., Daniel
Berman, M.D., Roger Blumenthal, M.D., Matthew J. Budoff, M.D., Jay
Cohn, M.D., Erling Falk, M.D., Ph.D., Ole Faergeman, M.D., Zahi
Fayad, Ph.D., Harvey S. Hecht, M.D., Wolfgang Koenig, M.D., Ph.D.,
Daniel Lane, M.D., Ph.D., Morteza Naghavi, M.D., John Rumberger,
M.D., Ph.D., Allen J. Taylor, M.D. Writing Group: Erling Falk, M.D.,
Ph.D. (Coordinator); (alphabetic order): Juhani Airaksinen, M.D.,
Dan Arking, Ph.D., Juan Badimon, Ph.D., Raymond Bahr, M.D., Daniel
Berman, M.D., Matthew J. Budoff, M.D., Jay Cohn, M.D., Jasenka
Demirovic, M.D., Ph.D., Pamela Douglas, M.D., Ole Faergeman, M.D.,
Zahi Fayad, Ph.D., James A. Goldstein, M.D., Harvey S. Hecht, M.D.,
Victoria L.M. Herrera, M.D., Sanjay Kaul, M.D., M.P.H., Wolfgang
Koenig, M.D., Ph.D., Robert A. Mendes, M.D., Morteza Naghavi, M.D.;
Tasneem Z. Naqvi, M.D., Ward A. Riley, Ph.D., Yoram Rudy, PhD, John
Rumberger, M.D., Ph.D., Leslee Shaw, Ph.D., Robert S. Schwartz,
M.D., Arturo G. Touchard, M.D. Advisors (alphabetic order): Arthur
Agagston, M.D., Stephane Carlier, M.D., Ph.D., Raimund Erbel, M.D.,
Chris deKorte, Ph.D., Craig Hartley, Ph.D., Ioannis Kakadiaris,
Ph.D., Roxana Mehran, M.D., Ralph Metcalfe, Ph.D., Daniel O'Leary,
M.D., Jan Nilsson, M.D., Gerard Pasterkamp, M.D., Ph.D., Paul
Schoenhagen, M.D., Henrik Sillesen, M.D., Ph.D.
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