Digital Solutions Can Transform CVD Care, Prevention

Heart disease contributes to a total of $363 billion in annual spending.1 Aside from the burden of illness, heart-related health complications are the most expensive chronic conditions for patients, employer groups, and health plans, explained Edo Paz, MD, senior vice president, Medical Affairs, Hello Heart, as he kicked off the 2025 Greater Philadelphia Business Coalition on Health (GPBCH) meeting, The Heart & Other Muscles: Employer Symposia on Managing Cardiovascular & Musculoskeletal Conditions.

To mitigate these challenges, Paz stressed the value of harnessing digital solutions to educate individuals on their risks, enhance their access to appropriate care, and prevent CVD when possible.

Edo Paz, MD, senior vice president, Medical Affairs, Hello Heart | image credit: Matthew Nichol, 5Cents Media

For over 100 years, cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been the leading cause of death in the US.2 One of the primary risk factors for heart disease is hypertension, impacting nearly half of Americans—yet many are unaware they even have high blood pressure (BP).

“This is very frustrating as a cardiologist, because we know very well how to treat hypertension,” Paz said. “There's lots of medications for treating hypertension. They're all generic. They're all inexpensive. We understand the diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes people should be making to control hypertension, and even still, we do a poor job.”

Notably, 80% of CVD cases could be prevented if everyone was better equipped to manage hypertension, stroke, high cholesterol, and coronary heart disease. These risk factors, Paz added, already increase patients’ and employers’ medical costs.3

But where does CVD fall on benefits leaders’ and employers’ list of priorities compared with cancer, behavioral health, or other health concerns? According to a recent Hello Heart survey, 94% of respondents recognized heart health as a serious issue; however, only one-third felt they were adequately prepared to manage CVD.

Innovative digital solutions represent 1 of the many avenues employers, in both the private and public sectors, can pursue to address CVD. For example, Hello Heart’s mobile application connects to a BP cuff and allows users to monitor their BP, heart rate, cholesterol, and activity, among other cardiovascular metrics. Coupled with digital coaching, Paz added how this approach helps users understand their heart health without overwhelming them with information. The application is also designed to help users better track and adhere to their medications. Members can also generate reports for their providers to better inform care plans.

For these initiatives to be successful, Paz expressed how solutions need to be engaging, proven, and easy.

Ensuring people continue with their enrollment is of utmost importance, he continued; equally important is publishing clinically meaningful data. For example, in a 2021 publication in JAMA Network Open, wherein researchers followed over 28,000 Hello Heart members for 3 years, demonstrated the benefits of using a self-management hypertension program. Participants with a baseline systolic BP (SBP; n = 108) over 140/90 experienced a 21-point drop in SBP.5 These findings hold significant implications, Paz added, because lowering SBP by 20 mm Hg can reduce a person’s risk of CVD, including heart attack and stroke, by over 40%.6

Another study published in Journal of the American Heart Association included over 100,000 Hello Heart Members enrolled in a mobile health cardiovascular self-management program. After 13 months, members with baseline low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels at or exceeding 160 mg/dL (n = 99) exhibited an average LDL reduction of 67 mg/dL. Furthermore, over a period of 7 months, those with obesity (body mass index at or above 30) lost 12 pounds on average.7 Paz noted, “we're not a weight loss solution, we're a heart health solution. But it turns out that if you help people make diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes that are geared towards heart health, they also lose weight.”

Hello Heart also contributes to great cost savings, as indicated by recent publication in Value in Health. This analysis demonstrated how their program contributed to a reduction in employers’ medical spending of 18%, as well as saved participants an average of $1709 in medical costs per year.8

“Innovative solutions, digital solutions—they play a crucial role in addressing heart disease. Whether through clinical outcomes or cost savings, it's important that these programs are proven and meaningful so that when implemented, they truly benefit members, plans, and funds,” Paz concluded.

References

1. 9 Reasons U.S. Employers Should Prioritize Heart Health. Hello Heart. May 18, 2022. Accessed March 31, 2025. https://www.helloheart.com/post/9-reasons-us-employers-should-prioritize-heart-health-in-2022#:~:text=data%20from%20203%20Hello%20Heart%20users%20and,spend%20of%20$1%2C865%20per%20participant%20per%20year

2. More than half of U.S. adults don’t know heart disease is leading cause of death, despite 100-year reign. American Heart Association. January 24, 2024. Accessed March 31, 2025. https://newsroom.heart.org/news/more-than-half-of-u-s-adults-dont-know-heart-disease-is-leading-cause-of-death-despite-100-year-reign

3. Heart disease awareness remains alarmingly low when we need it most. Hello Heart. January 31, 2025. Accessed March 31, 2025. https://www.helloheart.com/post/heart-disease-awareness-remains-alarmingly-low-when-we-need-it-most

4. When heart health matters, employees thrive. Hello Heart. 2025. Accessed March 31, 2025. https://www.helloheart.com/heart-health-matters-report-2025/employers

5. Gazit T, Gutman M, Beatty AL. Assessment of hypertension control among adults participating in a mobile technology blood pressure management program. JAMA Netw Open. 2021;4(10):e2127008. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.27008

6. Bundy JD, Li C, Stuchlik P, et al. Systolic blood pressure reduction and risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. JAMA Cardiol. 2017;2(7):775-781. doi:10.1001/jamacardio.2017.1421

7. Paz E, Pargaonkar VS, Roach BJ, et al. Comprehensive cardiovascular risk factor control with a mobile health cardiovascular risk self-management program. J Am Heart Assoc. 2024;13(10):e033328. doi:10.1161/JAHA.123.033328

8. Roberts W, Lyson H, Speer C, Tovar E, Paz E, Zimlichman E. Cost Savings and Improved Clinical Outcomes From a Mobile Health Cardiovascular Disease Self-Management Program. Value Health. 2025 Feb 13:S1098-3015(25)00068-3. doi: 10.1016/j.jval.2025.01.025