Cardiovascular disease (CVD), listed as the underlying cause of death, accounted for
868,662 deaths in the US in 2017.
• CVD claim more lives each year than all forms of cancer and Chronic Lower Respiratory
Disease (CLRD) combined.
• Between 2015 and 2018, 126.9 million American adults had some form of CVD. Between
2016 to 2017, direct and indirect costs of total CVD were $363.4 billion ($216.0 billion in
direct costs and $147.4 billion in lost productivity/mortality).
• In 2015 to 2018, 58.8% of non-Hispanic (NH) Black females and 60.1% of NH Black males
had some form of CVD.
• In 2018, Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) was the leading cause (42.1%) of deaths
attributable to CVD in the US, followed by stroke (17.0%), high blood pressure (11.0%),
heart failure (9.6%), diseases of the arteries (2.9%), and other CVD (17.4%).
• CVD is the leading global cause of death, and accounted for approximately 18.6 million
deaths in 2019.
• CVD and stroke accounted for 13% of total health expenditures in 2014 to 2015. This is
more than any major diagnostic group.