BACKGROUND/RATIONALE Despite consensus that effective hypertension treatment reduces morbidity and mortality, many patients in the United States continue to have suboptimal blood pressure control. Even with the provider resources and motivated patients inherent in a randomized clinical trial, over a third of patients participating in the Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial (ALLHAT) were not at their goal blood pressure of 140/90 after five years. Similarly, within the Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 12 we have found that as many as 30% of patients with hypertension are above the target BP of 140/90, despite routine physician reminders to patients who are above these goals. Moreover, preliminary results of an internally funded randomized trial suggest minimal impact of further physician-focused interventions to reduce patients' blood pressure.