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County profile Tennessee Metropolitan HRSA MUA/P

Black health in Shelby County, Tennessee

500,000

Black residents (ACS)

53.88%

Of county population

$38,200

Median household income, Black

12.40%

Uninsured, Black residents

Shelby County, Memphis, is ~54% Black, with about 500,000 Black residents. Regional One Health (the former Memphis MED) is the county's level-I trauma centre and its principal safety-net hospital; Tennessee's non-adoption of Medicaid expansion means Regional One absorbs a large share of uninsured Black inpatient admissions. The University of Tennessee Health Science Center anchors the county's academic medicine; Meharry Medical College (in Nashville) contributes a significant share of the county's Black physicians.

Shelby County Health Department's Community Health Improvement Plan names Black maternal mortality, infant mortality, and cardiovascular disease as the top three equity priorities. The county's Sickle Cell Foundation of Tennessee is the state's oldest sickle-cell disease advocacy organisation.

Headline outcomes

Race-stratified county-level figures pulled from CDC WONDER small-area estimates, the annual County Health Rankings, and the CDC NVSS state/county life tables. County values with cell counts below CDC suppression thresholds are marked as data pending.

Life expectancy (Black)

71.80 yrs

At birth, CDC NVSS Small-Area LE

Infant mortality (Black)

13.50

Per 1,000 live births, CDC WONDER

CVD mortality (Black)

388.60

Age-adjusted per 100k, CDC WONDER I00-I99

County Health Rankings

#88

Overall rank in Tennessee (lower = better)

HRSA Medically Underserved Area / Population HPSA: Primary Care HPSA: Mental Health

Policy context in Shelby

Tennessee has not adopted Medicaid expansion. Low-income Black adults in this county without dependent children and without employer coverage typically fall into the coverage gap — uninsured by default. Medicaid does not cover doula services in this state. Postpartum Medicaid coverage extends for 12 months after delivery — the federal recommended standard, in place here.

Where to get help in Shelby

Find Black health providers & resources in Shelby

Black clinicians in Shelby

Directory filtered to this county & state

Federally Qualified Health Centers

Sliding-scale FQHCs across Tennessee

Crisis & support resources

988, postpartum helplines, Black-serving crisis lines

Tennessee state profile

Statewide context, Medicaid policy, all 10 health facets

References & primary sources

  1. Demographics: US Census ACS 5-year 2019–2023, Tables B03002 (race), B01003 (total population), S1903 (median income), B27010B (uninsured by race).
  2. Mortality and life expectancy: CDC WONDER county-level Multiple Cause of Death and Underlying Cause of Death, pooled 2020–2022; CDC NVSS Small-Area Life Expectancy Estimates, 2016–2020 release.
  3. County Health Rankings: University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute & Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2024 release.
  4. HRSA shortage-area designations: HRSA HPSA Find and MUA/P Find, current as of 2025.
  5. Rural-Urban Continuum Codes: USDA Economic Research Service, 2023 release.

Data refreshed:

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