The Surest guide to cardiac rehab
Living with a heart condition comes with enough to manage. Health insurance shouldn’t be another worry.
Use this guide to understand the cardiac rehabilitation (rehab) options available through your Surest health plan, and ways to protect your heart and help prevent future issues.
What is cardiac rehab?
Cardiac rehab is a medically supervised program designed to help strengthen recovery and support long-term heart health—a team effort between medical professionals, family and friends, and you. Programs are personalized based on heart health needs, medical history, and recovery goals. According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), cardiac rehab can help people safely return to an active, heart-healthy lifestyle.[1]
The American Heart Association describes cardiac rehab as a combination of exercise training, education for heart-healthy living, and support to help reduce stress.[2]
Exercise counseling and training: Light to moderate exercise gets your heart pumping and your entire cardiovascular system working hard. As reported in the American Heart Association’s Scientific Journal, with most rehab sessions, you start slow and build up over time, with care teams often monitoring heart rate, blood pressure, and heart rhythm before, during, and after exercise sessions.[3]
Education for heart-healthy living: You don’t know what you don’t know. A key element of cardiac rehab is education. How can you better identify and manage risk factors? How do medications work—and why do they matter? What role does aspirin play? How does smoking affect the heart?[4]
Learning how to reduce stress: Research published in the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute shows that stress takes a toll on your heart.[5] It can take just one emotionally upsetting event to trigger a heart attack or angina in some people. [6] Cardiac rehab may help you identify and manage everyday sources of stress and provide practical strategies on how to cope with lifestyle changes.
Is cardiac rehab right for you?
According to the Million Hearts® program, a national public effort to help prevent heart attacks and strokes, individuals who complete at least 36 cardiac rehab sessions have a 47% lower risk of death and a 31% lower risk of heart attack than those who complete only one cardiac rehab session.[7]
You may benefit if:
• You’re recovering from a heart attack
• You’ve been diagnosed with coronary artery disease with stable angina
• You’re living with heart failure
• You’ve had coronary angioplasty or coronary artery bypass graft surgery
• You’ve had a heart valve repaired or replaced
• You’ve had a heart transplant
How cardiac rehab helps support heart health
There are numerous short- and long-term health benefits of cardiac rehab, according to “How cardiac rehab can help heal your heart” by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).[8] Their list includes:
• Improving heart health, fitness, and recovery after a heart attack or procedure
• Better managing heart disease and related conditions including diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol
• Building healthy, lasting habits like moving more, quitting smoking, and eating a heart-healthy diet
• Learning how to take your medications safely and correctly, to help lower future risk of problems
• Reaching or maintaining a healthy weight
• Increasing your energy and strength to help make even everyday activities, like carrying groceries or climbing stairs, a little easier to manage
Supporting physical and emotional recovery
Many people experience depression after a heart attack. Research also shows that participation in cardiac rehab is associated with lower rates of hospital readmission and improved quality of life, making it an important part of recovery and secondary prevention.[9]
Get more information about cardiac rehab
1. Search “cardiac rehab” in the Surest app to find an in-network provider. Both in-person and virtual programs may be available.[10]
2. If you choose an in-person cardiac rehab program, contact your provider and ask if cardiac rehab is appropriate for your situation. Follow the provider’s enrollment instructions. The Surest app will show the copay amount, which applies per session.
3. For a virtual cardiac rehab program, call the number listed in the Surest app to learn about eligibility and begin enrollment.[11]
4. Stick with the program. Completing cardiac rehab as recommended can help support recovery, improve cardiovascular health, and build confidence in returning to everyday activities.
Cardiac rehab exists to help you.
If you’d like additional help or resources, ask to speak to a Clinical Advocate. Our clinical team is here and ready to help.
Connect with a Clinical Advocate at 833-860-0333 or book a 1:1 appointment.
© 2016 - 2025 Healthwise, Incorporated. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor.
This content is not medical advice. You should always consult with your health care professional.
1“Cardiac rehab,” National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, accessed September 2026. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/heart-treatments-procedures
2“What is cardiac rehab?”, American Heart Association, accessed September 2026. https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/cardiac-rehab
3“Core components of cardiac rehab,” American Heart Association Scientific Journal, 2024. https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1161/CIR.0000000000001289
4“What is cardiac rehab?”, American Heart Association, accessed September 2026. https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/cardiac-rehab
5“Manage stress,” National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, accessed September 2026. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/heart-healthy-living/manage-stress
6“Manage stress,” National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, accessed September 2026. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/heart-healthy-living/manage-stress
7“Cardiac Rehabilitation At A Glance,” Million Hearts 2027. https://millionhearts.hhs.gov/data-reports/factsheets/cardiac.html
8“How Cardiac Rehabilitation Can Help Heal Your Heart,” CDC, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/heart-disease/about/cardiac-rehabilitation-treatment.html#cdcreference_6
9“Cardiac rehabilitation: Improving function and reducing risk,” Am Fam Physician.
10Provider availability varies by location and may be limited in some areas.
11Provider availability varies by location and may be limited in some areas.