Hypertension is common, costly, and controllable. Almost 1 in 2 US adults has hypertension, and among those, the estimated rate of controlled blood pressure was only 43.7% in 2017-2018 a decline from 53.8% in 2013-2014. Uncontrolled blood pressure can lead to largely preventable events such as myocardial infarction, stroke, and maternal mortality, as well as debilitating and expensive conditions such as kidney disease, heart failure, and cognitive decline. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, which have increased in the US, contribute to adverse maternal and child health outcomes and can increase a woman’s lifetime risk of cardiovascular disease. Disparities in blood pressure control and, consequently, in these health outcomes, persist by race and ethnicity, age, and geography. Yet broad and equitable hypertension control is possible, and some health care practices and systems have achieved rates of 80% or higher across a wide spectrum of sites and populations served.
