Cardiac

CMS/JCAHO: Hydralazine/Nitrates Recommendations for African American HF Patients
Based upon the results of the recent African American Heart Failure Trial (A-HeFT), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the drug BiDil for use in the treatment of heart failure in self-identified African American patients. BiDil is a fixed-dose combination of two drugs, hydralazine and isosorbide dinitrate, that are individually available in generic form. In response to both the publication of the A-HeFT results and the FDA approval of BiDil, CMS and JCAHO have received questions about the potential impact of these developments on the current quality measure for ACE-inhibitor therapy in heart failure. Read the CMS/JCAHO response. (PDF, 372K)

National Inpatient Acute Myocardial Infarction
Learn more about the Arizona HCQIP project to decrease the morbidity and mortality associated with AMI in Medicare beneficiaries.

National Inpatient Heart Failure
Learn more about the Arizona HCQIP project to decrease the morbidity and mortality associated with heart failure in Medicare beneficiaries.

ARBs to Be Added to Hospital AMI and HF Performance Measures
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) have announced that angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) will be added to their hospital performance measures for treatment of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and heart failure (HF) patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD). Until now, CMS/JCAHO hospital performance measures have included only the prescription of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors at discharge for these patients. The revised measures will go into effect for patients discharged on or after January 1, 2005. To read the November 15, 2004, CMS/JCAHO announcement, click here: Clinical Fact Sheet (PDF, 468 KB).