Black Health Profile
Black health in Tennessee
1,186,320
Black residents (ACS)
16.90%
Of state population
Tennessee has 1.2 million Black residents, concentrated in Memphis and Nashville. Meharry Medical College in Nashville is one of the four HBCU medical schools and graduates a significant share of Black physicians nationally. Vanderbilt University Medical Center is the state's primary academic medical center. TennCare has not expanded under the ACA.
The largest Black health disparity tracked on these pages varies by metric. Use the ten topic pages below to see each one cited against the state's primary-source dataset.
On the positive side, every US state now has CDC-funded maternal mortality review committees, and most have at least one HRSA-designated federally qualified health center serving low-income Black residents. The ten facet pages below point to state-specific programs and providers.
Key takeaways
- Black residents: 1,186,320 (16.9% of the state).
- Medicaid expansion not adopted — lowest-income adults without dependent children have no direct path to coverage.
- Medicaid does not cover doula services.
- Midwife coverage under Medicaid is restricted.
- 12-month postpartum Medicaid extension active.
Health outcomes & coverage
Ten race-stratified indicators drawn from CDC, Census, KFF, and SAMHSA primary sources. Each page links the underlying dataset, compares to the national average, and frames the state-specific drivers and policy levers.
maternal mortality
Black women in Tennessee die from pregnancy-related causes at 47.6 per 100,000 live births — 2.5× the US national rate of 19.
Read the maternal mortality breakdown
infant mortality
Black infants in Tennessee die before age one at 13.2 per 1,000 live births — compared to the US all-race rate of 5.4.
Read the infant mortality breakdown
cardiovascular mortality
Age-adjusted cardiovascular mortality among Black residents of Tennessee: 381 deaths per 100,000 (CDC WONDER, ICD-10 I00-I99).
Read the cardiovascular mortality breakdown
diabetes prevalence
16.4% of Black adults in Tennessee have been diagnosed with diabetes — compared to the US all-race rate of 11.6%.
Read the diabetes prevalence breakdown
breast cancer mortality
Age-adjusted breast cancer mortality among Black women in Tennessee: 29.3 per 100,000 (CDC WONDER, ICD-10 C50).
Read the breast cancer mortality breakdown
prostate cancer mortality
Age-adjusted prostate cancer mortality among Black men in Tennessee: 42.8 per 100,000 (CDC WONDER, ICD-10 C61).
Read the prostate cancer mortality breakdown
life expectancy
Life expectancy at birth for Black residents of Tennessee: 72.2 years (US all-race: 77.5).
Read the life expectancy breakdown
uninsured rate
11.1% of Black residents of Tennessee have no health insurance coverage — vs. a US all-race uninsured rate of 8%.
Read the uninsured rate breakdown
Medicaid coverage
About 28% of Black residents of Tennessee receive Medicaid coverage. Tennessee is a Medicaid non-expansion state.
Read the Medicaid coverage breakdown
mental health access
60.2% of Black adults in Tennessee who experienced a past-year mental health need reported not receiving the treatment they needed (SAMHSA …
Read the mental health access breakdown
Policy context in Tennessee
Tennessee has not adopted Medicaid expansion. Low-income Black adults without dependent children earning above state Medicaid eligibility thresholds and below the ACA marketplace subsidy threshold fall into the coverage gap — uninsured by default. Medicaid does not currently cover doula services. Postpartum Medicaid coverage extends for 12 months after delivery, the federal recommended standard.
Tennessee has not adopted Medicaid expansion. TennCare extended postpartum Medicaid to 12 months effective April 2023. Doula Medicaid coverage is not authorized. Certified nurse-midwife scope is restricted compared to most other states.
Find Black health providers & resources in Tennessee
Counties in Tennessee
County-level Black Health profiles for the 1 Tennessee county with the fullest race-stratified data and editorial coverage.
Data sources & refresh cadence
- US Census ACS 5-year 2019–2023, Table B02001 (race) & S1903 (income).
- CDC WONDER Multiple Cause of Death (D69) & Underlying Cause of Death (D76), 2018–2022 release.
- KFF Medicaid expansion and state coverage trackers, Q1 2026.
- SAMHSA National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2022 state annual.
- HRSA NHSC workforce data, 2024.
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