Heart Association Launches $1M Initiative to Transform Women's Midlife Cardiovascular Care

The American Heart Association has launched a groundbreaking initiative to transform cardiovascular care for midlife women, fueled by a $1 million philanthropic gift from Dr. Jennifer Ashton, a prominent women's health authority and Emmy Award-winning medical journalist, and her husband Tom Werner, chairman of Fenway Sports Group. This visionary investment will accelerate the creation of a new continuing education program designed to unite cardiologists and OB-GYNs, ensuring women navigating the menopause transition receive proactive, evidence-based cardiovascular care. The initiative addresses a critical gap: cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for women, responsible for one in three female deaths annually, and risks intensify during menopause due to hormonal and physiological changes.

The new interdisciplinary educational program, set to launch initial courses in Fall 2026, aims to equip healthcare professionals with practical tools to better identify and treat cardiovascular risk in midlife women. By fostering collaboration between specialties, the initiative seeks to close treatment gaps that often occur because OB-GYNs may lack current cardiology knowledge while cardiologists may be unaware of the latest aspects of menopause medicine. The program will include tailored curricula developed in partnership with other professional medical societies, with the overall goal of increasing healthcare professional knowledge, competence, and performance around women's heart health with a focus on menopause and other OB-GYNs issues.

This initiative matters because early intervention at midlife represents one of the most powerful opportunities to prevent cardiovascular disease in women. During the menopause transition, women experience sharp increases in cardiometabolic risk factors including worsening lipid profiles, vascular stiffening, rising blood pressure, and increased abdominal fat. Furthermore, only 7.2% of women transitioning to menopause meet physical activity guidelines, and fewer than 20% maintain a healthy diet, compounding midlife risk. The program's coordinated, evidence-based approach could significantly reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease among women by ensuring they receive integrated care during this pivotal life stage.