A growing coalition of patients, clinicians and advocates urge adoption of new federal quality measures that would allow better screening, management and treatment of high cholesterol.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Partnership to Advance Cardiovascular Health (PACH) announced today that more than 500 individuals across nearly all 50 states have signed a petition urging the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to adopt quality measures that track whether patients' low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, or LDL-C, is measured and treated toward a goal.

"It's time for national quality measures to reflect clinical evidence and allow patients to treat toward a goal."

This petition is the culmination of the Measure What Matters campaign. PACH, in partnership with the Family Heart Foundation, rallied policymakers, advocates, clinicians and patients together to call on CMS and the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) to adopt the new, clinically aligned quality measure recommendations.

"Heart disease remains the number one killer in America, and high LDL-C is one of the most well-established, modifiable risk factors we have," Executive Director of PACH, Ryan Gough, said in a statement. "Passing 500 signatures on this petition tells CMS what our community has known for years: you can't manage what you don't measure. It's time for national quality measures to reflect the clinical evidence and allow patients to treat toward a goal."

CMS uses quality measures to set national clinical priorities, publicly report data and incentivize the provision of quality health care. They set the standard of care. But the current quality measure for the treatment of patients with cardiovascular disease is based upon statin prescription alone, assuming patients who have been prescribed a statin have their cholesterol under control. Updating quality measures to incentivize LDL-C screening and treatment to a standard goal is a long-overdue correction that will save lives, improve outcomes and reduce costs.

These signatories bookend a landmark announcement from the ACC/AHA Multisociety Dyslipidemia Guideline recommendation, which seeks to update the older guidelines to establish specific, risk-based LDL-C goals. The quality measure also includes a Class 1 recommendation for every adult to receive universal Lp(a) screening at least once in their lifetime.

"The new 2026 guidelines represent a major step forward for the cardiovascular community. Now, the hard work begins," said Hilly Paige, Chief Innovation Officer at the Family Heart Foundation. "The NCQA and CMS must adopt these measures to align with the new guideline recommendations."

The Partnership to Advance Cardiovascular Health submitted the letter to the Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on September 15.

About the Partnership to Advance Cardiovascular Health: The Partnership to Advance Cardiovascular Health (PACH) is a non-profit coalition of patient, provider and advocacy organizations working together to advance transformative, patient-centered policies that expand access to innovative cardiovascular treatments. Learn more at advancecardiohealth.org.

Media Contact: Rachel Reh, Communications Director, Partnership to Advance Cardiovascular Health, rreh@advancecardiohealth.org 

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SOURCE The Partnership to Advance Cardiovascular Health