Byron Dorgan: “I want to talk about two items today. The first deals with February being American Heart Month. Let me describe my…”

“I want to talk about two items today. The first deals with February being American Heart Month. Let me describe my interest in this issue. Today, of course, is Valentine's Day. Most of us will receive some kind of valentine from someone that has a red heart on it and describes love and affection. It is a wonderful day for all of us. The other symbol is the human heart, which is a symbol that relates to the American Heart Association, an organization I have worked with a great deal. And also, as I said, this is American Heart Month. Robert Benchley once said: "As for me, except for an occasional heart attack, I feel as young as I ever did," describing, of course, the devastation of the cardiac problems that people who suffer from heart disease have. I want to talk, just for a moment, about that because we need to continue every day in every way to deal with this killer in our country. Heart disease is this country's number 1 killer. It is the leading cause of disability and the leading cause of death in our country. Forty-one percent of the deaths in our country each year are caused by heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases, more than the next six leading causes of death combined. Cardiovascular disease and heart disease kill more women than the next 14 causes of death combined each year. That is 5.5 times more deaths than are caused by breast cancer.”