Catherine P. Benziger, MD, MPH, FACC, FAHA, is a board-certified non-invasive cardiologist at Essentia
Health in Duluth, MN, USA specializing in cardiometabolic disease, lipid management, women’s heart
disease, echocardiography, and clinical research. Currently, she serves as medical director of Heart and
Vascular research at Essentia Health and adjunct associate professor at the University of Minnesota
Medical School, Duluth Campus. EH serves over 1.2 million residents across Minnesota, Wisconsin, and
North Dakota, with a significant rural population (55%). As primary investigator and steering committee
member of multiple large clinical trials, she oversees a research team at the Essentia Institute of Rural
Health, working on various industry and investigator-initiated projects. She represents Essentia on the
Cardiometabolic Health Alliance and the Cardiometabolic Center Alliance (CMCA) and is involved
nationally in the American Heart Association (AHA) Epidemiology council and American College of
Cardiology (ACC) Prevention council. She is the co-principal investigator for EH in the Patient-Centered
Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) network Science, Technology, And Research Partnership (STAR)
Clinical Research Network. Dr. Benziger’s work focuses on improving cardiovascular health in rural areas,
including prevention of cardiometabolic disease, such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and
cholesterol, through research and education.