Salem saw $10,481 in Medicaid claims for COVID-19 services in 2024

At least $10,481 in Medicaid payments were made in Salem in 2024 for services billed with HCPCS codes specifically assigned to COVID-19, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database.

Medicaid is an insurance program managed by the states and financed in partnership by federal and state governments. Designed to support low-income households, seniors, children, and those with disabilities, Medicaid is one of the nation’s largest health care programs.

Because Medicaid is funded by taxpayers, shifts in local billing offer a lens into how public health funds are distributed within a community.

This analysis defined COVID-19–related care as services reflected in HCPCS codes labeled or listed as “COVID-19” or “coronavirus”-related by code descriptions or reference data. Thus, calculations only represent services directly tagged as COVID-19 in claims data, potentially excluding other pandemic-related care coded otherwise.

To provide context, Medicaid payments for COVID-19 care in Clifton represented the highest total in New Jersey for 2024, amounting to $1,725,516 in related submissions.

In 2024, Inspira Medical Centers, Inc was identified as the only facility in Salem to file Medicaid claims for COVID-19–coded services.

COVID-19–specific billings represented a significant share of the growth in Medicaid expenditures in Salem during the key pandemic years.

All other Medicaid claim categories combined rose by $1,241,363 from 2020 through 2024, an increase of 37.6%.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services data show that combined federal and state Medicaid expenditures totaled about $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, accounting for nearly 18% of total national health spending—up from $613.5 billion prior to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019.

This rise of roughly 40% in just a few years was driven primarily by increased enrollment and demand during and in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Major federal budget legislation spearheaded during the Trump administration called for reduced federal Medicaid support and new program structures. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to reduce federal Medicaid expenditures by over $1 trillion over the next decade. It also introduces requirements such as work verification and greater cost-sharing, which may limit benefits or funding for certain recipients. These developments could increase the share of Medicaid costs carried by states, curb federal spending growth, and impact coverage for many Americans.

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

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database served as the data source for this article. View the original data here.