LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A bill named in honor of Kentucky U.S. Rep. Andy Barr's late wife and focused on increasing research into a little-understood heart disease is heading to U.S. President Joe Biden's desk.
The Cardiovascular Advances in Research and Opportunities Legacy (CAROL) Act passed the House unanimously on Monday after being approved by the U.S. Senate last week.
The House Republican introduced the legislation — which will provide $28 million to expand research on valvular heart disease and its treatment — last year to honor his wife, Carol Leavell Barr. She passed away in 2020 from sudden cardiac death brought on by mitral valve prolapse, an underlying heart condition that is fatal in .2% of cases.
"I can’t think of a better way to honor Carol Barr, whose selflessness and service to her community and country will be furthered through the law that will bear her name,” Barr said after the bill passed the House.
Heart valve disease kills approximately 25,000 people each year, and there’s still a lot unknown about it, Chief Executive Officer of the American Heart Association Nancy Brown said.
House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy called the legislation a testament to “Andy’s tenacity through tragedy.”
“Carol used to have a saying, ‘Just get it done,'" House Republican Whip Steve Scalise said. "Today, the House of Representatives is getting it done for Carol Barr and the tens of thousands of women who suffer from valvular heart disease.”
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