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County profile Texas Metropolitan HRSA MUA/P

Black health in Harris County, Texas

878,000

Black residents (ACS)

18.63%

Of county population

$48,200

Median household income, Black

20.50%

Uninsured, Black residents

Harris County has roughly 878,000 Black residents, the largest Black population of any Texas county and the fourth-largest of any US county. The Texas Medical Center in downtown Houston is the largest medical complex in the world, anchored by Ben Taub Hospital (Harris Health System's level-I trauma centre serving uninsured patients) and the MD Anderson Cancer Center, which runs the largest cancer-disparities research program in the South.

Texas's non-adoption of Medicaid expansion leaves hundreds of thousands of Harris County adults in the coverage gap; KFF estimates roughly a third are Black. Harris Health operates the largest public hospital system in Texas and runs a network of 18 community health centres that absorb much of the demand for uninsured primary care.

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)

73.00 yrs

At birth, CDC NVSS Small-Area LE

Infant mortality (Black)

10.80

Per 1,000 live births, CDC WONDER

CVD mortality (Black)

371.50

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

County Health Rankings

#83

Overall rank in Texas (lower = better)

HRSA Medically Underserved Area / Population HPSA: Primary Care

Policy context in Harris

Texas 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 Harris

Find Black health providers & resources in Harris

Black clinicians in Harris

Directory filtered to this county & state

Federally Qualified Health Centers

Sliding-scale FQHCs across Texas

Crisis & support resources

988, postpartum helplines, Black-serving crisis lines

Texas 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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