Cullman Medicaid spending for pathology and lab procedures totals $1,909,842 in 2024

Medicaid providers in Cullman billed $1,909,842 for services in the Pathology and Laboratory Procedures category during 2024, based on figures from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. This amount reflects a 20.6% uptick from 2023, when claims for these services totaled $1,583,401.

Medicaid is a state-run public health insurance program funded jointly by federal and state governments. It covers low-income residents, families, seniors, children, and people living with disabilities, making up a significant part of the nation’s health care system.

Since taxpayer dollars fund Medicaid, trends in local billing illustrate how public health care resources are distributed within a community.

The “Pathology and Laboratory Procedures” category covers a set of Medicaid-billed services identified by the type of care delivered, following consistent HCPCS and CPT code groupings. In this review, billing codes were grouped under one category each using set code prefixes and numerical ranges. This approach groups similar services, prevents duplicate counting, and maintains accurate rankings over time.

Pathology and Laboratory Procedures was the second-largest Medicaid service category by payment total in Cullman in 2024, following increases seen in several categories.

Across Alabama, Pathology and Laboratory Procedures ranked third among Medicaid payment categories in 2024.

From five years prior to 2024, Medicaid payments for Pathology and Laboratory Procedures in Cullman climbed by $1,474,906, or 339.1%. Periods of more substantial growth occurred, with significant annual increases in 2021 and 2023.

Though these payments were made across Cullman, they were mostly concentrated in a few ZIP codes. In 2024, ZIP code 35058 accounted for $1,041,707 in Medicaid payments for Pathology and Laboratory Procedures, while 35055 represented $868,135. These top two ZIP codes made up 100% of the Medicaid payments in this category in Cullman that year.

Medicaid payments within the Pathology and Laboratory Procedures category largely centered on a limited selection of billing codes.

Payments associated with Pathology and Laboratory Procedures in Cullman rose 20.6% from 2023 to 2024. By comparison, payments across all Medicaid claim categories in the city rose 11.9% during that period.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, combined state and federal Medicaid spending reached around $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023. This figure made up approximately 18% of all national health spending, jumping from about $613.5 billion in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

This represents almost 40% growth in just a few years, with the main driver being expanded enrollment and greater usage of services during and after the pandemic.

Federal budget legislation during the Trump administration included major plans to decrease Medicaid funding and alter its structure. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is forecast to reduce federal Medicaid expenditures by more than $1 trillion over a decade and introduces measures such as work requirements and more cost-sharing, potentially reducing coverage and funding for some enrollees. These policies are expected to transfer more Medicaid costs to states and slow the growth of federal support, while the program continues to cover tens of millions nationally.

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.