Medicaid spending for National Codes Established services climbs 16.6% in Decatur for 2024

Decatur Medicaid providers submitted $1,815,716 in claims for services categorized under the National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies in 2024, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending data show. Compared to 2023, when claims reached $1,556,646 for the same services, this represents a 16.6% rise.

Medicaid, a state-administered public health insurance initiative funded by federal and state governments together, covers low-income individuals, families, children, seniors and people with disabilities. It makes up a major segment of the U.S. health care system.

Because tax dollars fund Medicaid payments, shifts in billing within any community indicate how those public health expenditures are distributed locally.

The “National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies” category groups together Medicaid-billed services organized by the kind of care given, using standardized HCPCS and CPT code sets. This analysis assigned each billing code to a singular service category, basing assignments on code prefixes and ranges to ensure related services were grouped correctly and that totals reflect consistent yearly rankings while avoiding duplication.

While Medicaid expenditures rose across many service types, the National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies category ranked fourth by payment volume in Decatur for 2024.

Statewide in Alabama, the National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies category was the leading category by Medicaid payments for 2024.

From 2019 through 2024, payments tied to the National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies group in Decatur increased by $287,655, an 18.8% rise. Certain periods saw faster growth, notably in both 2023 and 2022 year-over-year tallies.

Claim activity in this service category was spread around Decatur, but Medicaid payments were heavily focused in certain ZIP codes. In 2024, ZIP code 35603 saw $1,815,715 in Medicaid payments under the National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies category. That single ZIP code accounted for all Medicaid spending in this service category in Decatur during the year.

Payments within this category were also highly concentrated among just a few specific billing codes.

For historical comparison, National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies claims activity in Decatur grew 16.6% from 2023 to 2024, while Medicaid claims across all categories citywide saw a 19.1% increase over the same term.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reports that total joint federal and state Medicaid spending reached approximately $871.7 billion for fiscal year 2023. This made up about 18% of the nation’s health care spending and represented a large jump from $613.5 billion in 2019, before the pandemic.

This increase—which represents a roughly 40% growth—has been attributed mainly to higher enrollment and stronger usage following and during the pandemic.

Recent national budget actions under the Trump administration featured major proposals to change Medicaid funding levels and program structures. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed in 2025, is anticipated to reduce federal Medicaid funding by more than $1 trillion over 10 years, while introducing work requirements and increased sharing of costs. These policy changes could decrease both coverage and program funding for certain recipients, shift funding burdens to states, and curb the pace of future federal support for Medicaid, even as program participation remains high.

Note: HCPCS codes are shown for context within the category. Category totals and rankings in this article are based on standardized service groupings rather than individual billing codes.

Information in this article was obtained from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. The source data can be found here.