• Congress can also spend our tax dollars on the following: 

• Heart disease prevention and education programs

• Programs that increase appropriate public access to heart defibrillators

• Increase timely access to new medical devices and technologies, including prompt assignment of Medicare procedure codes

• Prescription drug coverage for people receiving Medicare

Other federal laws and regulations that are important to our heart health include those that: 

• Discourage smoking

• Promote physical exercise and nutrition education

• Establish food labeling requirements

• Regulate the prescription medicine approval process

As advocates, we must educate ourselves about the origin, nature, and scope of these laws, policies, and regulations, which directly affect the recovery, quality of healthcare, and quality of life of women with heart disease. We also need to become actively involved in shaping these same laws, policies, and regulations. By speaking out publicly, we offer a powerful and credible voice that can’t be ignored. Politicians pay attention to what we have to say because we can explain how their actions personally affect us. Plus, we have no ulterior motives or hidden agendas -- we simply want to recover our health and heal our lives.