Cleveland’s Medicaid claims for COVID-19 services totaled $272,172 in 2024

In 2024, Medicaid payments for services tied to HCPCS codes associated with COVID-19 in Cleveland reached at least $272,172, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database.

Medicaid, jointly funded by federal and state governments and administered by the states, is a public health insurance program. It provides coverage for low-income families and individuals, seniors, children, and people with disabilities, and represents a significant portion of the U.S. health care system.

Because taxpayer dollars fund Medicaid payments, trends in local billing offer insight into how communities allocate public health funding.

In this report, COVID-19–related services were defined as those billed under HCPCS codes marked “COVID-19” or “coronavirus” in their descriptions or support data. The totals captured here only include services directly identified as COVID-related on billing records, not care associated with the pandemic that may be billed under other codes.

As a point of reference, Marion reported the highest amount of Medicaid claims for COVID-19 services in Ohio in 2024, with virus-related billing totaling $10,818,404.

Fourteen providers in Cleveland submitted Medicaid claims for COVID-19–related services in 2024. Of those, COVID-19 Vaccine Administration was the leading code, totaling $209,617 in claims.

On average, Medicaid providers in Cleveland received $19,441 each in COVID-19–related payments, which falls below the state average of $119,792 per provider.

During the pandemic, services specific to COVID-19 accounted for a significant portion of the increase in Medicaid spending in Cleveland.

From 2020 to 2024, Medicaid payments for all other types of claims rose by $290,917,185—an increase of 83.2%.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reported combined federal and state Medicaid spending reached about $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, making up approximately 18% of national health care expenses, and rising from roughly $613.5 billion in 2019, before COVID-19.

This marks about 40% growth over several years, fueled primarily by expanded enrollment and greater use during and after the pandemic period.

Recent federal budgets passed during the Trump administration have included measures to reduce federal Medicaid funding and alter program structure. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to cut over $1 trillion from federal Medicaid support over 10 years and implement policies like work requirements and increased cost-sharing, potentially limiting program funding and coverage for some. These shifts are projected to move more expenses to states and slow the federal funding growth for Medicaid, even though the program continues to cover tens of millions of Americans.

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

Sources in this article include the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. Find the source data here.