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Cardiovascular

Hypertension Disparities in Black Americans

57.1%

Age-adjusted share of Black adults with hypertension, and almost the same for Black men and Black women, which is true of no other group NCHS reported.

Source: CDC/NCHS Data Brief No. 364, April 2020 (NHANES 2017 to 2018)
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In NHANES 2017 to 2018, 57.1% of Black adults had hypertension on an age-adjusted basis. The figure barely moves by sex: 57.2% of Black men and 56.7% of Black women. Every other group NCHS reported showed men far above women, by 13 or 14 percentage points. Whatever drives hypertension in Black women is not doing what it does elsewhere.

Hypertension here means systolic pressure of 130 mmHg or above, diastolic of 80 or above, or currently taking medication to lower blood pressure, the threshold set by the 2017 ACC/AHA guideline. The older 140/90 definition produces a much lower number from the same population, so any prevalence figure quoted without its threshold cannot be compared to this one.

This page uses the 2017 to 2018 cycle because it is the most recent for which NCHS published a breakdown by race. The August 2021 to August 2023 cycle reports prevalence by sex and age only: 47.7% of adults had hypertension, and just 20.7% of adults with hypertension had it controlled to below 130/80.

Age-adjusted hypertension prevalence, NHANES 2017 to 2018

Hypertension defined as 130/80 mmHg or above, or taking medication to lower blood pressure. NCHS reported these three race and Hispanic-origin groups only.

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Group Age-adjusted prevalence

Source: CDC/NCHS Data Brief No. 364, April 2020. Age-adjusted to the 2000 US standard population.

Methodology

CDC NHANES prevalence estimates, age-standardized to the 2000 US standard population. NHANES surveys a nationally representative sample using physical examination and laboratory measurements. Hypertension defined per 2017 ACC/AHA guidelines (systolic BP ≥130 mmHg or diastolic BP ≥80 mmHg, or current use of antihypertensive medication). State-level estimates use Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data stratified by self-reported race. Control rates reflect the proportion of diagnosed hypertensive individuals with BP below threshold.

Cite this page

APA

Black Health. (2026). Hypertension Disparities in Black Americans. Black Health Data Hub. https://blackhealth.org/data/hypertension-disparities/

BibTeX

@misc{blackhealth_hypertensiondisparities_2026,
  title     = {Hypertension Disparities in Black Americans},
  author    = {{Black Health}},
  year      = {2026},
  url       = {https://blackhealth.org/data/hypertension-disparities/},
  note      = {Accessed July 30, 2026}
}

Direct link

https://blackhealth.org/data/hypertension-disparities/

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License: CDC/NCHS NHANES published estimates, public domain

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