Congressional Women ‘Go Red’ For American Heart Month

Washington, D.C., Feb. 14, 2013 —A bipartisan group of women from the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate, including Representative Rosa DeLauro, (D-CT) and Representative Elizabeth Esty (D-CT) joined the American Heart Association on Valentine’s Day to ‘Go Red’ in support of the 43 million women who are currently living with heart disease.

 Women members from the House and Senate gathered for a photo at the U.S. Capitol dressed in red to remind people across the country that heart disease is not just a “man’s disease.”  It is the number one killer of women in the United States and accounts for one out of three female deaths annually. Every minute one woman dies because of heart disease.

 “The American Heart Association would like to thank the women in Congress who went red today because building awareness is the first step in overcoming heart disease in women,” said Nancy Brown, CEO of the American Heart Association.  “By uniting in this effort, they serve as an inspiration to women across the country and help remind all of us that by taking action together we can fight back against our number one health threat.”

 February is American Heart Month and it also marks the 10th anniversary of the American Heart Association’s ‘Go Red for Women’ campaign. In the last decade more than 627,000 women’s lives have been saved and awareness that heart disease is women’s number one killer has increased 23 percent.

 For more information on women and heart disease, visit www.goredforwomen.org .

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