Newberry Medicaid spending on COVID-19 services reached $172,742 in 2024

In 2024, Medicaid made payments amounting to at least $172,742 in Newberry for services billed under HCPCS codes that are specifically connected to COVID-19. This is based on data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database.

Medicaid, a public health insurance initiative administered at the state level and funded jointly by federal and state governments, serves low-income residents, the elderly, children, and individuals with disabilities. As such, it represents one of the country’s largest health care systems.

Because Medicaid relies on taxpayer funding, fluctuations in billing figures highlight how health care resources are distributed locally.

This review classified COVID-19 services using HCPCS codes described or identified as “COVID-19” or “coronavirus”-related either in billing records or reference sources. Consequently, the payment figures only represent those services explicitly marked as COVID-related, and do not include spending for pandemic care that may have been classified under broader or alternative codes.

By comparison, Columbia documented the state’s highest total of Medicaid payments linked to COVID-19 services in 2024, accumulating $1,102,671 in virus-specific claims.

To put this in perspective, the typical Medicaid payment per provider for COVID-19 services in Newberry was $86,371, exceeding the state average of $37,377.

Total Medicaid disbursements for all other claims rose by $5,148,767 from 2020 through 2024, constituting a 228.8% surge.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, states and the federal government together spent about $871.7 billion on Medicaid in fiscal year 2023. This figure made up nearly 18% of national health care expenditures—significantly higher than the $613.5 billion spent in 2019 before the pandemic.

This jump represents an approximate 40% increase within a few years, mostly attributed to increased enrollment and greater use during the pandemic period and its aftermath.

Recent federal budget measures under the Trump administration have proposed substantial reductions in federal Medicaid contributions and adjustments to the program. For instance, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to lower federal Medicaid outlays by more than $1 trillion over 10 years and introduces steps such as work requirements and higher cost-sharing, which could affect coverage and financial support for certain recipients. These adjustments are projected to transfer additional expenses to states and restrict further expansion of federal Medicaid funding, while the program continues to provide for millions of Americans.

Note: Totals include only HCPCS codes specifically identified as COVID-19 services and do not encompass the full scope of pandemic-related health care spending.

This article is based on records from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. The original data is available here.