Orange logs at least $115,482 in Medicaid payments for COVID-19 services in 2024

In 2024, Medicaid payments in Orange reached at least $115,482 for services billed with HCPCS codes directly tied to COVID-19, based on information from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database.

Medicaid, a public health insurance program, is administered by states and funded through a federal-state partnership. The program provides coverage for low-income individuals and families, seniors, children, and people with disabilities, making it a substantial element of the U.S. health care system.

Taxpayer funding supports Medicaid payments, so shifts in local billing convey how public resources are used for health care in a region.

This analysis identified COVID-19–related services by reviewing HCPCS codes labeled or designated as “COVID-19” or “coronavirus” in billing or reference data. Therefore, these figures include only services explicitly identified in records as COVID-related and do not count pandemic-era care billed under different or broader codes.

San Jose, for context, had the highest Medicaid payments in California for COVID-19 services in 2024, at $5,601,479 in related claims.

Six providers in Orange filed Medicaid claims for COVID-19–related services in 2024, with the COVID Specific code representing $110,736 of the total.

The average payment per provider for COVID-19 services in Orange was $19,247, which is below the California average of $52,976.

During the pandemic period, COVID-19–specific medical services contributed to a discernible rise in Medicaid spending in Orange.

Total Medicaid payments for all other service categories grew by $59,266,481 between 2020 and 2024, reflecting a 37% increase.

Across the two years before the pandemic, Orange saw average annual Medicaid payments of $155,625,249.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reports combined federal and state Medicaid spending totaled approximately $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, which amounted to about 18% of all national health care expenditures. That figure is a sharp increase from around $613.5 billion in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The rise equates to an increase of approximately 40% over a few years, mainly due to expanded Medicaid enrollment and greater utilization during and following the pandemic.

Recent federal budget measures passed during the Trump administration have featured large proposed reductions to federal Medicaid contributions and a shift in program structure. For instance, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to decrease federal Medicaid spending by more than $1 trillion over the next 10 years and adds requirements such as work mandates and higher beneficiary cost-sharing. These policies are anticipated to push additional costs onto states and curb the expansion of federal Medicaid funds, although the program still serves tens of millions nationwide.

Note: Includes only HCPCS codes specifically labeled for COVID-19 services; does not encompass all health spending during the pandemic.

Data for this report comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database, which is accessible here.