Excellence Award for Hypertension Research
Sponsored by the Council on Hypertension
Applications will open on April 1, 2026
To qualify for this award, you must meet the following deadlines:
- June 30, 2026, 6 p.m. (CT) – Deadline to have an active Professional Membership.
- July 3, 2026, 6 p.m. (CT) – Deadline to apply for this award in the Council Awards System.
This award honors excellence in research and discoveries in the field of hypertension, as well as a researcher's contributions. Members of the Excellence Award for Hypertension Research Selection Committee assess the candidates' impact on their fields throughout their productive careers, as well as any single discovery.
Award Recipients
The Excellence Award for Hypertension Research
| Year | Awardee |
|---|---|
| 2025 | S. Ananth Karumanchi, MBBS Dominik N. Müller, PhD |
| 2024 | Bina Joe, PhD, FAHA, FAPS, ISHF |
| 2023 | Lisa A. Cassis, PhD |
| 2022 | Joey P. Granger, PhD, FAHA Edwin K. Jackson, PhD, FAHA |
| 2021 | Alan Kim Johnson, PhD, FAHA Daniel Levy, MD, FAHA Jane F. Reckelhoff, PhD, FAHA, FAPS |
| 2020 | Giuseppe Mancia, MD, PhD |
| 2019 | Rhian M. Touyz, MBBCh, PhD, FMedSci, FAHA |
| 2018 | Paul K. Whelton, MB, MD, MSc, FAHA R. Clinton Webb, PhD, FAHA |
| 2017 | Allyn L. Mark, MD, FAHA Richard J. Roman, PhD, FAHA |
| 2016 | Suzanne Oparil, MD, FAHA R. Ariel Gomez , MD, FAHA |
| 2015 | Costantino Iadecola, MD Pedro Jose, MD, PhD, FAHA |
| 2014 | Thomas M. Coffman, MD Toshiro Fujita, MD, PhD |
| 2013 | Murray Esler, MBBS, PhD |
| 2012 | Robert M. Carey, MD, FAHA L. Gabriel Navar, PhD, FAHA |
The Novartis Award For Hypertension Research
| Year | Awardee |
|---|---|
| 2011 | Ernesto L. Schiffrin, MD, PhD Christopher Wilcox, MD, PhD |
| 2010 | John Oates, MD Paul Vanhoutte, MD, PhD |
| 2009 | Carlos M. Ferrario, MD Curt D. Sigmund, PhD |
| 2008 | Mordecai P. Blaustein, MD John W. Funder, MD, PhD Juan Carlos Romero, MD |
| 2007 | Friedrich C. Luft, MD |
| 2006 | William B. Campbell, PhD Theodore W. Kurtz, MD |
| 2005 | Kenneth Bernstein, MD Barry Brenner, MD |
| 2004 | Jorge H. Capdevila, PhD David G. Harrison, MD |
| 2003 | M. Judah Folkman, MD |
| 2002 | John E. Hall, PhD Gerald F. DiBona, MD |
| 2001 | Victor J. Dzau, MD |
| 2000 | Hans R. Brunner, MD Jay N. Cohn, MD Haralambos Gavras, MD |
| 1999 | Richard P. Lifton, MD, PhD |
| 1998 | Masashi Yanagisawa, MD, PhD |
| 1997 | Oscar A. Carretero, MD Allen W. Cowley, Jr., PhD Donald Dean Heistad, MD |
The Ciba Award For Hypertension Research
| Year | Awardee |
|---|---|
| 1996 | Robert J. Lefkowitz, MD Oliver Smithies, DPhil |
| 1995 | Louis J. Ignarro, PhD Salvador Moncada, MD, PhD, DSc, FRS |
| 1994 | Adolfo J. Debold, OC, PhD, FRSC Ervin G. Erdos, MD |
| 1993 | John Paul Rapp, DVM, PhD |
| 1992 | Detlev Ganten, MD, PhD |
| 1991 | Salomon Z. Langer, MD Andrew P. Somlyo, MD Avril V. Somlyo, PhD |
| 1990 | Francois M. Abboud, MD Michael J. Brody, PhD |
| 1989 | Edgar Haber, MD |
| 1988 | Robert R. Furchgott, PhD Ferld Murad, MD, PhD |
| 1987 | Donald J. Reis, MD |
| 1986 | Maurice B. Burg, MD John C. McGiff, MD E. Eric Muirhead, MD |
| 1985 | Pierre Corvol, MD Joel Menard, MD Tadashi Inagami, PhD |
| 1984 | David R. Bohr, MD |
| 1983 | David W. Cushman, PhD Miguel A. Ondetti, PhD Sergio Henrique Ferrelra, MD, PhD |
| 1982 | Kyuzo Aoki, MD Kozo Okamoto, MD Yukio Yamori, MD |
| 1981 | Edward D. Freis, MD William B. Kannel, MD |
| 1980 | Bjorn U.G. Folkow, MD, PhD Arthur C. Guyton, MD |
| 1979 | Karl H. Beyer, Jr., MD James M. Sprague, PhD |
| 1978 | Louis Tobian, Jr., MD |
| 1977 | John A. Luetscher, MD James F. Talt, FRS Sylvia Talt, Bsc, FRS |
| 1976 | Raymond P. Ahlquist, PhD James W. Black, FRS |
| 1975 | Lewis K. Dahl, MD James O. Davis, MD Walter Kempner, MD |
The Stouffer Prize
| Year | Awardee |
|---|---|
| 1972 | Vincent P. Dole, MD John W. Gofman, MD Robert S. Gordon, Jr, MD John L. Oncley, MD |
| 1970 | Irvine H. Page, MD Sir George Pickering, MD 1969 Jerome W. Conn, MD Jacques Genest, MD Franz Gross, MD John H. Laragh, MD |
| 1968 | F. Merlin Bumpus, PhD W. Stanley Peart, MD Robert Schwyzer, PhD Leonard T. Skeggs Jr., PhD |
| 1967 | John W. Cornforth, MD U.S. Von Euler, MD Peter Holtz, MD George J. Pipjak, MD |
| 1966 | Harry Goldblatt, MD Ernst Klenk, MD |
Applicant/Nominee Eligibility
- Must be a member of the Council on Hypertension the time of application. Join or renew today!
- Scientists with a background in hypertension research and those who have made a meritorious scientific discovery or discoveries, either alone or with others, may be considered
- A scientist may be nominated an unlimited number of times by different individuals in the same year.
- Previous winners are not eligible for nomination.
- If a nominee is not selected, nominators may update and resubmit the application in a future award cycle by contacting [email protected].
- Due to the prestige of the Excellence in Hypertension Research Award (including previous names for the award), past recipients are not eligible to apply for or be nominated for other awards sponsored by the Council on Hypertension.
- Each recipient of council-sponsored awards, regardless of award category, is eligible to receive only one council-sponsored award each year per scientific meeting.
- Notwithstanding the above, the Association’s Officers have the discretion to determine eligibility for the award in extraordinary circumstances when there is an issue relating to policy or positions or other potentially controversial issues.
Evaluation Criteria
Applications will be evaluated by a panel of accomplished researchers, scientists, clinicians, and academicians, representing the breadth of basic cardiovascular sciences.
Contacting the judging panel, including but not limited to phone calls, emails, social media messages, or any other form of communication, before submitting your application or during the review process will result in disqualification.
Applications will be judged on the following:
- Adherence to eligibility criteria
- Completeness and quality of application materials
- The candidate’s contributions to the field of hypertension, including:
- overall career achievements,
- notable discoveries or innovations, and
- influence of their work on advancing the field.
Timeline
- June 30, 2026 – Deadline to have an active Professional Membership.
- July 3, 2026, 6 p.m. (CT) – Deadline to apply for this award in the Council Awards System.
- August 2026 – Nominators will be notified of their application status.
Required Documents
The following items must be submitted through the Council Awards Application System for consideration for this award:
- Letter of nomination describing the work or discovery that qualifies the candidate for consideration.
Note: Members of the Council on Hypertension Excellence Award for Hypertension Research Selection Committee may not write letters of nomination or support and may not be nominated for the award during their term.
- Curriculum vitae, including all publications (abstracts not necessary).
- Three reference letters, one primary and two supporting, written on electronic letterhead, from people familiar with the candidate’s work and scientific contributions to the field of hypertension.
- Electronic copies of up to three publications representing the nominee’s most significant work.
- Candidate biography (250 words or less), which may be used for publicity.
How to Apply/Submit a Nomination
Visit the Council Awards Application System to complete an application.
A Professional Heart Daily (PHD) username and password are required to access the system. If you are creating a PHD profile for the first time, please register using your Professional Membership ID number.
Membership Requirement
Professional Membership with the American Heart Association and affiliation with the Council on Hypertension are required for all applicants. Please allow 3–5 days for processing—do not wait until the deadline to Join or Renew.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Click the link for the Council Awards Application System.
- Sign in with your Professional Heart Daily username and password.
- Follow these instructions to set up your profile in ProposalCentral. Setting up your ProposalCentral profile will only need to be done the first time you log in to apply for an American Heart Association Council Awards.
Note: The grant maker named “American Heart Association” in ProposalCentral refers to Research Awards and is a separate funder. Council Awards are listed under American Heart Association Council Awards.
- Start Your Application:
- Select Create New Proposal.
- Filter by Grant Maker: Choose American Heart Association Council Awards.
- From the Programs list, select: Hypertension Scientific Sessions Excellence Awards.
- Click the Apply Now button.
- Within the application, select the award: HTN Excellence Award for Hypertension Research.
For more detailed information on ProposalCentral, also included are additional materials on specific ProposalCentral functionality.
Prize
The winner will present a lecture during the Hypertension Scientific Sessions and will receive:
- Complimentary registration for the meeting
- $2,500 honorarium
- $1,000 travel stipend
- Two (2) tickets to the Hypertension Scientific Sessions Awards Banquet
- Award medallion
Questions
- Council Awards Application System (ProposalCentral) Help Desk: [email protected]
- Council Awards: [email protected]
- Member Services: [email protected]
- Abstract Submitter Password/Login: [email protected]
- Abstract Submission: [email protected]
AHA Professional Members are Difference Makers
Hypertension Scientific Sessions
Hyatt Regency Crystal City | Arlington, Virginia