Heart Health Is for Everyone

American Heart Month offers an opportunity to remind us all of the disparities that still exist in cardiovascular health. Black Americans, for example, suffer disproportionately from heart disease as reported by the American Heart Association in its recent Health Disparities Presidential Advisory.  COVID-19 has only exacerbated this issue.

Equitable heart health across our society won’t be quick or easy to achieve, but we at Amgen are committed to doing our part. Just last month, we joined the CDC Foundation and other partners in sponsoring the “Alliance for the Million Hearts Campaign,” which aims to prevent one million heart attacks and strokes this year by giving patients access to information they can use about heart health. 

We are also working to increase minority participation in clinical trials. Today, for instance, Black Americans account for just 2.5% of participants in cardiovascular medicine clinical trials, well below their 13% representation in the U.S. population. Members of the Amgen Black Employees Network are helping to lead our efforts in addressing this under-representation. Through the “Representation in Clinical Research” or “RISE” initiative, we will look to improve investigator diversity, expand access to trial sites for people of color, tackle economic and cultural barriers to trial participation, and, ultimately, include more diverse participants in our research.

Every American – regardless of skin color – deserves an equal shot at cardiovascular health. Click here to learn more about what we at Amgen are doing to promote health equity for all of our citizens.