Asar Qamar, MD, a cardiologist from Ocala, Florida, agreed to pay $2 million and release claim to $5.3 million in suspended Medicare funds as part of a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). He also agreed to stop participating in federal healthcare programs for three years.

If all eligible patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction received sacubitril/valsartan (Entresto) at an optimal level, the U.S. could prevent an estimated 28,484 deaths per year, according to a recent study.

Four sisters in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area have familial dilated cardiomyopathy, a heart condition that killed their father in 2003, the Washington Post reports.

Cardiovascular Systems agreed to pay $8 million to settle allegations that the company paid kickbacks to physicians to convince them to use its medical devices.

Although age-adjusted mortality rates for cardiovascular disease, heart disease and stroke in the U.S. have decreased since 2000, the rate of decline has slowed since 2011, according to an analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

HeartWare voluntarily recalled batteries for its HeartWare ventricular assist device (HVAD) on June 29 after discovering the batteries may lose power prematurely due to faulty cells.

Alvin Royse, JD, CPA, and Steven Houser, PhD, will become the American Heart Association (AHA) chairman and president, respectively, for the 2016-17 fiscal year, which begins on July 1.

An FDA advisory panel narrowly voted on June 28 in favor of an expanded indication for empagliflozin (Jardiance), an oral medication that is FDA-approved to treat adults with type 2 diabetes.