Rural health study is told it’s losing federal funds, and other major heart studies are worried

Rural health study is told it’s losing federal funds, and other major heart studies are worried

Vasan Ramachandran is baffled. A cardiologist and veteran of the famed Framingham Heart Study, he is struggling to understand why a similar study he brought to life in 10 rural counties across four Southern states is facing elimination. The RURAL Cohort Study, set in motion six years ago, was working toward its recruitment goal of 4,600 people, a sign that it was winning the trust of people in remote areas of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and…