Counter Cholesterol

71 million American adults have high levels of bad cholesterol. Only 1-in-3 have it under control, and fewer than half get treatment. National Forum collaborators are bending the curve on cholesterol control, with messages that motivate more people to take charge of their cholesterol risk.

Closing the Gap

The National Forum convened experts to develop a strategy to close this 45-million-person gap and reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.

The conversation resulted in Counter Cholesterol™, an evidence-based communications and messaging campaign that motivates women to manage their and their family members’ cholesterol risk.

Women who see these messages (developed and tested in collaboration with National Forum members and community partners) say they are 30% more likely to manage their cholesterol. They are also more likely to talk with their healthcare providers and family members about cholesterol risk.

Initiative Resources


Counter Cholesterol Steering Committee

Jennifer Robinson, MD, MPH

Title Steering Committee Chair

Positions held
  • Professor, Departments of Epidemiology & Medicine
  • Director, Prevention Intervention Center
  • Department of Epidemiology
  • College of Public Health
  • University of Iowa

Cat Davis Ahmed, MBA

Positions held
  • Director of Outreach, Familial Hypercholesterolemia Foundation

David Kountz, MD

Positions held
  • Senior Vice President, Medical and Academic Affairs
  • Jersey Shore University Medical Center
  • Professor of Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School

David Larsen, RN

Positions held
  • Director, Quality Improvement, Select Health

Dr. Krishnaswami Vijayaraghavan, MD, MS, FACP, FACC, FCCP, FNLA

Positions held
  • Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of Arizona
  • Vice President, Scottsdale CV Center
  • Immediate Past Governor, ACC Arizona
  • President, South West Lipid Association, Chapter of National Lipid Association
  • Immediate Past President, Cardiorenal Society of America( CRSA)
  • President, Twinepidemic, Inc, Scottsdale Cardiovascular Center, PC

Janet Wright, MD, FACC

Positions held
  • Executive Director, Million Hearts CMS and CDC

Keith C. Ferdinand, MD, FACC, FAHA, FASH

Positions held
  • Professor of Clinical Medicine, Tulane University School of Medicine

Kevin Sneed, PharmD

Positions held
  • Senior Associate Vice President, USF Health
  • Dean and Professor, USF College of Pharmacy
  • University of South Florida

Kim Stitzel, MS, RD

Positions held
  • Founder and Principle, Stitzel Health and Well-being Strategies

Laura Gordon

Positions held
  • Chief Executive Officer, Institute for Advanced Clinical Trials for Children

Marjory Cannon, MD

Positions held
  • Medical Officer, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

Mary Ann Champagne, RN, MSN

Positions held
  • Clinical Nurse Specialist, Stanford Health Care
  • Preventive Cardiology
  • Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association

Susan Campbell, MPH

Positions held
  • Vice President of Public Policy, WomenHeart

Gladys Velarde, MD, FACC

Positions held
  • Associate Professor of Medicine,
  • Director, Women’s Cardiovascular Health Program
  • Director Cardiovascular Fellowship Program, University of Florida College of Medicine-Jacksonville

Counter Cholesterol Scientific Advisory Board

Christopher Tashjian, MD, FAAFP, FHIT

Positions held
  • Vibrant Health Family Clinics

Deepak Bhatt, MD, MPH, FACC, FAHA, FSCAI, FESC

Positions held
  • Executive Director of Interventional Cardiovascular Programs, Brigham and Women’s Hospital Heart & Vascular Center Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Michael Davidson, MD

Positions held
  • University of Chicago

Thomas A. Pearson, MD, MPH, PhD

Positions held
  • Executive VP for Research and Education, Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine, UF Health

Christie Ballantyne, MD


Funding for this initiative provided by: