Blood pressure control

Every year, more than 10 million people die from hypertension – but we can change that.

blood pressure control strategies

Why blood pressure control?

High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is one of the most common, deadly and undertreated health issues globally.

die every year

+

That’s 20 people dying from hypertension every minute, every day.

The treatment works. It’s safe, effective and affordable. The challenge we’re here to solve? Expanding access to life-saving treatment that works, worldwide.

Our partners are getting blood pressure under control

40

countries with large-scale hypertension control programs kickstarted by Resolve to Save Lives

221,570

facilities equipped to provide high-quality hypertension care

34,000,000+

patients enrolled in effective, data-driven programs

581,995

health care workers trained

11,100,000

patients with their blood pressure under control, reducing their risk of a sudden heart attack or stroke

How we’re controlling blood pressure

Our approach to tackling hypertension is about making the best treatment accessible to as many people as possible and rigorously tracking their outcomes. Together with our work to improve nutrition, controlling blood pressure can save 100 million lives by 2050.  

Here are the five ways our partners are doing it: 

Increasing blood pressure control from 21 to 50% globally will save millions of lives.

Simple, standard treatment protocols

Standardizing hypertension treatment—with specific medications, dosages and action steps—streamlines care and improves adherence.

Reliable access to essential medicines and technology

Life-saving blood pressure medicines must be available when and where patients need them, at prices they can afford.  

The right digital platforms  

We power public health programs with simple, digital platforms that can manage millions of health records—and provide actionable data to save millions of lives. 

Patient-centered care  

When treatment is accessible, affordable, and easy to stick to, more people stay on track. 

Team-based care  

Trained non-physician health workers can support more patients to get the care they need, helping clinics run more smoothly.   

(Duotone version)

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Partners

World Health Organisation (WHO)

Benchmarks for health emergencies

We partner with the World Health Organization to standardize best practices for preparedness, including developing a benchmarking tool to simplify and accelerate preparedness planning under International Health Regulations.

The cost of health care worker infections

In our advocacy efforts to protect health care workers, we released a joint report with the World Bank to calculate the true cost of health care worker infections during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as wider socioeconomic implications.

How we work

We support countries to implement the HEARTS technical package—a strategic approach to improving heart health we co-created with WHO—through technical assistance, capacity building, and catalytic funding. We advocate for policies that make better blood pressure control possible and build the evidence base about what works.

Learn more about our approach

healthier food policies

Where we work: Blood pressure control

JACC-Lessons learned article cover

Lessons learned from treating 34 million people with hypertension

Journal of the American College of Cardiology
Hypertension is the leading cause of preventable death globally, yet only one in five people with high blood pressure have it under control despite availability of effective, low-cost medicines and…
Screenshot 2025-12-02 at 09.34.11

Global Development Assistance for Health Allocated to Cardiovascular Disease Control, 2015 to 2022

Journal of American College of Cardiology
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide yet CVD prevention efforts remain starkly underfunded. A new landmark report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology quantifies…
large-WHO 2nd GHR cover

Global report on hypertension 2025: High stakes—turning evidence into action

The World Health Organization (WHO)
The World Health Organization's second global hypertension report identifies access to life-saving medicines as the biggest barrier—but also the greatest opportunity—for rapid, scalable progress to get high blood pressure under…
Screenshot from "One Penny, One Pill" video on cost of hypertension control

Watch: “One penny, one pill.” That’s all it costs to control high blood pressure.

Resolve to Save Lives
Governments, funders, and the private sector can improve access to blood pressure medicines for as little as one penny per pill.

Latest blood pressure control news

Join our Global Call to Action to Control High Blood Pressure today!

June 26, 2025

High blood pressure is the world’s leading killer, causing more deaths than all infectious diseases combined. But it doesn’t have to be. Evidence shows that progress is achievable with the…

A collage of an african man speaking at a lectern, an African lady holding a protest sign saying 'Act Now!' and two Asian smiling ladies

2025 in review: Country leadership, global impact

January 29, 2026

2025 was a difficult year for public health, but together with our partners, we made important progress against the world’s deadliest health threats. Cardiovascular health initiatives that we work with…

Workshop series prepares program managers to improve heart health

December 12, 2025
Resolve to Save Lives recently co-hosted it's second competency-based training workshop for national and subnational program managers improving heart health…