At least $10,818 in Medicaid claims linked to COVID-19 billed in Dawson for 2024

Public data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database shows at least $10,818 in Medicaid payments were made in Dawson in 2024 for services billed under HCPCS codes designated for COVID-19.

Medicaid is a publicly funded health insurance program operated by state governments with financial support from both state and federal budgets. The program serves low-income families and individuals, children, older adults and people with disabilities, and makes up one of the most significant segments of the national health care system.

As these Medicaid payments are sourced from taxpayers, fluctuations in local Medicaid billing offer a lens on how a community utilizes public health funds.

This report focuses on COVID-19–related medical services directly labeled as such via HCPCS codes marked “COVID-19” or “coronavirus” in billing details or official code references. The analysis, therefore, includes only those services distinctly specified for coronavirus connection, while any pandemic-related claims coded more generically are not included in the totals.

Elsewhere in Minnesota, Minneapolis saw the state’s highest total of Medicaid payments connected to COVID-19-linked services in 2024 with $269,940 in claims.

Two providers in Dawson filed for COVID-19–related Medicaid payments in 2024, and the Immunoassay code was the most frequently used, comprising $8,932 of the total.

Locally, average Medicaid payment per provider for COVID-19–relatable claims was $5,409, which is beneath the state mean of $9,636.

Medicaid payouts for all other categories grew by $79,214 between 2020 and 2024, amounting to a 30.8% increase.

Across the two years prior to the pandemic, Dawson recorded an annual average Medicaid payment totaling $248,259.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, federal and state Medicaid outlays combined reached approximately $871.7 billion in the 2023 fiscal year, representing about 18% of U.S. health care costs. That number reflects an increase from nearly $613.5 billion in 2019, prior to the pandemic’s onset.

This 40% spending rise over the last several years has been fueled primarily by pandemic-driven enrollment surges and overall increase in service use during and after COVID-19.

Recent federal budget law signed under the Trump administration featured sweeping Medicaid revisions. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is projected to reduce federal funding for Medicaid by over $1 trillion over the next ten years and brings new rules, such as work requirements and expanded cost sharing, which may curtail coverage and funding for some eligible recipients. These adjustments could result in additional fiscal responsibility falling upon the states and a likely cap on federal contributions, while Medicaid remains a key element in health care support for millions nationwide.

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

Information presented here derives from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. The complete source data are available here.