Heart Health Checks on track for 1 million milestone
Heart Week is 5th to 11th May – a national week of awareness about Australia's leading cause of death
Australia is on track to surpass 1 million Medicare Heart Health Checks since the item was first introduced in 2019 as the Heart Foundation urges more people to get checked to avoid a heart attack or stroke.
Heart disease is a silent killer with the first signs too often being a heart attack or stroke. A Medicare Heart Health Check is the nation's best tool in the fight against heart disease, giving people an understanding of their risk up to five years in advance – enough time to take preventive action.
Latest Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) data shows that more than 870,000 Heart Health Checks have been carried out on people in Australia since 2019, with around 20,000 happening each month.
Heart Foundation Healthcare Programs Manager, Natalie Raffoul, said the nation was on track to surpass 1 million Heart Health Checks before the end of the year.
"Heart Week (5th to 11th May) is the perfect time to remind people that a Heart health Check with your GP could save your life," she said.
"Heart disease is a 'silent killer' and often the first symptom is a heart attack or stroke.
"A Medicare Heart Health Check with your GP is a 20-minute check-up that calculates your risk of a heart attack or stroke in the next five years and gives you the foresight you need to take preventive action.
"We are so pleased to know that we'll hit a milestone 1 million Checks this year – but we know there is more to be done with around 2.5 million adults in Australia at high risk of having a heart attack or stroke in the next five years."
Beat the odds and book your Medicare Heart Health Check
The Heart Foundation is urging people aged 45 and over to book a Medicare Heart Health Check with their GP.
Some people may be eligible earlier, including First Nations peoples from 30 years and from 35 years for people living with diabetes.
Ms Raffoul said the Heart Health Check scored a number of risk factors and used those numbers to calculate an individual's risk.
"A unique algorithm developed by the Heart Foundation for use by GPs calculates this risk based on a combination of risk factors including high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and blood sugar levels," she said.
"Following the Check, your GP will develop a risk prevention plan tailored to your needs, giving you time to make important changes or take vital medications to prevent a heart attack or stroke."
