Petition Aims to Improve the Care of Patients with PAD

The Peripheral Arterial Disease (P.A.D.) Coalition has launched a petition drive at www.padcoalition.org to urge President Obama and Congress to increase access to evidence-based health care for individuals with PAD.

Approximately nine million Americans, including one in five men and one in six women in the Medicare population, have PAD or clogged arteries of the legs. PAD is a red flag that other arteries, including those in the heart and brain, are likely affected – increasing the risk of a heart attack, stroke and even death. It can also cause leg pain when walking and lead to disability, amputation and poor quality of life. Fortunately, heart attacks, strokes and deaths can be reduced and quality of life improved through the use of therapies recommended in national cardiovascular guidelines. However, many Americans with PAD don't receive this care until it's too late.

PAD is easily diagnosed through the anklebrachial index (ABI), a non-invasive, cost-effective test that compares the leg blood pressure to arm blood pressure. Medicare currently offers PAD testing for patients with leg symptoms, however, PAD is most often asymptomatic. PAD care guidelines developed by leading vascular groups recommend testing in individuals at highest risk for having the disease, including adults over age 50 with a history of diabetes or smoking and all adults over 70 years of age.

The P.A.D. Coalition aims to collect at least ten thousand signatures and will deliver the petition to Congressional leadership.

Please sign the petition and have your friends and relatives sign it too. To sign, go to www.padcoalition.org/petition.