At least $155 in Medicaid payments in Rifton linked to COVID-19 services in 2024

In 2024, Rifton saw Medicaid payments totaling at least $155 for services billed under HCPCS codes directly linked to COVID-19, based on information from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. This marks a 138.5% rise from 2023, when claims for the same codes amounted to $65.

Medicaid is a public health insurance program that operates at the state level and receives joint support from federal and state governments. The program covers low-income individuals and families, seniors, children, and people with disabilities, comprising one of the largest sectors in the U.S. health care system.

Because Medicaid relies on taxpayer funding, changes in billing levels reflect how communities use public health care resources.

Researchers identified COVID-19–related services for this analysis based on HCPCS codes described or designated as “COVID-19” or “coronavirus”-related within billing descriptions or reference data. Consequently, figures show only services strictly marked as COVID-19–related in billing and do not include broader pandemic care billed under general or non-specific codes.

By comparison, Brooklyn reported the highest Medicaid payments related to COVID-19 services in New York during 2024, totaling $3,718,101 for such claims.

The records indicate Esopus Medical, Pc was the sole provider submitting COVID-19–related Medicaid claims within Rifton in 2024.

Medicaid spending in Rifton grew significantly due to COVID-19–specific services during the height of the pandemic.

Before the pandemic, average yearly Medicaid payments in Rifton were $35,072 over the preceding two-year period.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, combined spending at the federal and state levels for Medicaid reached approximately $871.7 billion in fiscal 2023, accounting for nearly 18% of the nation’s total health outlays—up markedly from $613.5 billion in 2019, just prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The increase, fueled largely by expanded coverage and higher use of services during and after the pandemic, represents growth of close to 40% in just a few years.

Recent budget legislation passed during the Trump administration includes major proposals to reduce federal Medicaid funding and to restructure the program. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to reduce over $1 trillion from federal Medicaid spending across the next decade while introducing changes such as work requirements and increased out-of-pocket costs. These policies may shift a greater share of costs to states and restrict growth in federal Medicaid support, even as the program continues to serve millions nationwide.

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

The data in this report comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. The original source can be accessed here.