Thank you, Madam Chairperson. And my thanks to all of you for being here to discuss an issue critical to the health and well-being of this country.
I just spoke to Dr. Eldon Smith, who is involved in the heart health strategy. As I understand it, there are more deaths from heart disease and stroke than from all other chronic diseases put together. An important factor in this situation is high sodium. In fact, the news reports indicate that reduced sodium intake could reduce the number of people who have heart attacks and strokes by 11,500. That's a lot of people who would be affected by action on this front.
Your committee was set up almost two years ago, and it was to come up with a plan of action. Do you have a plan of action you can present to us today?