Nearly Half of American Adults Have Hypertension

If hypertension is a risk factor for Covid-19, then many Americans are at risk. Nearly half of adults in the United States have hypertension, according to the federal government's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. This survey is carried out through mobile examination units that fan out across the country and take measurements of a nationally representative sample of Americans. You can't get better data than this...

Percent with hypertension, 2017–18
Total, 18-plus: 45.4%
Aged 18 to 39: 22.4%
Aged 40 to 59: 54.5%
Aged 60-plus: 74.5%

Note: Hypertension is defined as systolic blood pressure greater than or equal to 130 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure greater than or equal to 80 mmHg or currently taking medication to lower blood pressure.

Hypertension rises steeply with age, with three out of four people aged 65 or older having the condition. The prevalence is greater for men (51 percent) than for women (40 percent), and it's greater for Blacks (57 percent) than for non-Hispanic Whites (44 percent) or Hispanics (44 percent).

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Hypertension Prevalence among Adults Aged 18 and Over: United States, 2017–2018