PhRMA: Nearly 300 preventive medicines for heart disease, stroke in development

WASHINGTON — A new report developed by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America revealed that nearly 300 heart disease and stroke medicines are in development.

PhRMA said that while 299 medicines are in development by the nation's biopharmaceutical companies, there is a growing need for such drugs; African-Americans have a 1.5 times greater rate of heart disease death than other Americans and a 1.8 times greater rate of fatal stroke.

“Medicines developed for cardiovascular health over the last three decades are in large measure responsible for preventing more than [one] million American deaths a year,” PhRMA president and CEO John Castellani said. “We have made and continue to make great progress in treating cardiovascular disease, but we also urge all Americans to take every precaution available to prevent it.”