There are initiatives to limit salt intake, and New York City has led the way with some salt restriction legislation. New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene is coordinating a nationwide effort to voluntarily reduce salt levels in restaurant and processed foods by at least 25% in the next five years. The National Salt Reduction Initiative was unveiled in January 2010; part of its plan is to create targets that will provide a comprehensive framework for sodium reduction in the nation’s food supply. Included in the plan are ways to monitor progress. The FDA is also debating whether to set new limits on sodium. The American Heart Association is pushing for a 50% reduction in the amount of sodium in processed foods--according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, that 50% reduction is estimated to be able to prevent 150,000 deaths from cardiovascular disease, annually.