Gadsden Medicaid spent at least $164,132 on COVID-19–related services in 2024

Gadsden Medicaid expenditures amounted to a minimum of $164,132 in 2024 for services identified by HCPCS codes specifically connected to COVID-19, based on information from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database.

Medicaid operates as a state-administered public insurance system, with funding coming from both state and federal governments. The program supports low-income people and families, seniors, children, and individuals with disabilities, making it a major component of health care in the United States.

Since Medicaid is taxpayer-funded, variations in local claims reflect how public health dollars are distributed in specific communities.

To conduct this review, analysts used HCPCS codes indicated or categorized as “COVID-19” or with “coronavirus”-related language in billing explanations or datasets. Therefore, the totals include only services specifically listed as COVID-related in billing data, excluding pandemic-care claims processed under more general or alternative medical codes.

In comparison, Birmingham had the highest Medicaid spending on COVID-19 services across Alabama for 2024, reporting $1,029,178 in COVID-19-specific claims.

Gadsden showed four providers filing Medicaid claims for COVID-19–related care in 2024. The COVID Specific code was most frequently billed, totaling $160,966 in claims.

Gadsden’s average Medicaid payment per provider for COVID-19–linked services reached $41,033, which exceeded Alabama’s statewide average of $35,056.

Total Medicaid outlays across other service categories in Gadsden grew by $3,060,434 between 2020 and 2024, which amounts to a 32.3% rise.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services data shows that combined federal and state Medicaid expenses were about $871.7 billion in fiscal 2023, roughly 18% of total U.S. health expenditures—a significant increase from $613.5 billion in 2019, ahead of the pandemic.

This nearly 40% climb in spending took place over several years, largely because of both higher enrollment and increased utilization during and in the aftermath of the COVID crisis.

Recent Trump-era congressional budget action includes efforts to curtail federal Medicaid contributions and revise the existing program structure. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,”, approved in 2025, is forecast to reduce federal Medicaid expenditures by more than $1 trillion over 10 years. It adds measures like work mandates and greater patient cost-sharing, developments that could limit funding and coverage for certain participants. Such measures are expected to assign increased financial responsibility to states, constraining growth in federal Medicaid assistance as the program continues serving tens of millions.

Note: Includes HCPCS codes explicitly labeled for COVID-19 services; totals do not represent all pandemic-related health care spending.

This report references the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database, accessible here.