CVC Urges Lawmakers to Support Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) Testing

and Education During American Diabetes Month

Amputation Reduction and Compassion (ARC) Act supports patient education and screening of
at-risk populations to reduce lower limb amputation.

Washington, DC, November 24, 2020 --(PR.com)-- In recognition of American Diabetes Month, the
CardioVascular Coalition (CVC), a coalition of physicians, care providers, advocates, and manufacturers
working to improve awareness and prevention of peripheral artery disease (PAD), is urging lawmakers in
Congress to support the Amputation Reduction and Compassion (ARC) Act (H.R. 8615), legislation to
expand education and screening for peripheral artery disease (PAD). PAD is a vascular disease that is
often associated with diabetes and other related co-morbidities.

The ARC Act was introduced last month by Representative Donald Payne, Jr. (NJ-10) and co-sponsored
by Reps. Bobby Rush (IL-01) and Ruben Gallego (AZ-7), to reduce amputations and close the racial
disparities gap in PAD by increasing screening and education. The bill calls for Medicare and Medicaid
coverage to include PAD screening tests and policies to prevent medical providers from being reimbursed
for amputation procedures without first completing arterial testing. The ARC Act would also establish
educational initiatives that inform health care professionals and the public about peripheral artery disease
and the importance of early detection.

More than 34.2 million Americans have diabetes, and an additional 88 million more are pre-diabetic,
putting them at a higher risk for developing PAD. PAD is responsible for more than 80% of
non-traumatic lower limb amputations in the U.S. each year, many of which could be avoided with
appropriate screening and intervention. Early PAD screening has proven to reduce the probability of an
amputation resulting from PAD by 90 percent, underscoring the critical importance of policies to expand
patient access to screening to reduce the occurrence of amputation in the U.S.

Unfortunately, PAD-related amputations occur more frequently among minority communities. Research
shows that right now, Black Americans with diabetes are up to four times more likely to undergo an
amputation as a consequence of PAD compared to white Americans. Similarly, Hispanic and Native
Americans with diabetes experience PAD at a measurably higher rates than white Americans.

“We commend Rep. Donald R. Payne, Jr. and his co-sponsors, Rep. Ruben Gallego and Rep. Bobby
Rush, for their leadership on this issue,” said Dr. Jeffrey Carr, founding and past president of the
Outpatient Endovascular and Interventional Society (OEIS) and a member of the CVC. “We hope
lawmakers in Congress will support H.R. 8615 to bring early screening to America’s most high-risk
individuals, including those who are diabetic and pre-diabetic.”

About the CardioVascular Coalition (CVC)

Our Mission is to advance patient access to care for peripheral artery disease (PAD). Physicians, care
providers, advocates, and manufacturers who comprise the CVC are dedicated to community-based
solutions designed to improve awareness and prevention of PAD, reduce geographic disparities in access

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to care, and secure patient access to high-quality, cost-effective interventional treatment across America.
Learn more at cardiovascularcoalition.org.

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Contact Information:
CardioVascular Coalition
Ellen Almond
703-548-0019
Contact via Email
http://cardiovascularcoalition.org/

Online Version of Press Release:

You can read the online version of this press release at: https://www.pr.com/press-release/826010

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