Medicaid payments connected to National Codes category surge 82.5% in Pell City in 2024

Data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database shows providers in Pell City billed $1,465,157 in 2024 for services within the National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies category. This billings total represented an 82.5% jump compared with 2023, when providers requested $802,781 for the same services.

Medicaid, a state-administered health insurance program funded by both federal and state governments, covers people with low incomes, children, seniors, and individuals with disabilities, and is one of the largest health care programs nationwide.

Changes in local Medicaid billing figures show how public health care funds from taxpayers are distributed within each community.

The “National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies” grouping includes Medicaid-billed services defined by service type and classified using standard HCPCS and CPT codes. Analysts assigned each billing code to one service category through consistent code prefixes and numerical ranges, which allows for a clear analysis of related services, avoids double counting, and preserves ranking accuracy over time.

Among several categories with increased Medicaid spending, National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies saw the highest total payments in Pell City during 2024.

Statewide in Alabama, this category also led all others for total Medicaid payments in 2024.

Medicaid payments attributed to National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies in Pell City rose by $1,465,157, or 0%, over the five years leading up to 2024. Spending accelerated at a faster pace during select periods, with notable annual surges seen in 2021 and 2022.

Although billing for services in this category occurred throughout Pell City, most payments were concentrated within a few ZIP codes. Payments in 2024 were highest in ZIP code 35125, with $823,341, and in ZIP code 35128, with $641,815. In total, these two ZIP codes made up 100% of Pell City’s Medicaid payments for this category during the year.

Payments in the National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies category focused on a relatively small number of billing codes.

During the period between 2023 and 2024, Medicaid payments in Pell City attached to this category rose 82.5%, compared to a 3.9% change across all Medicaid claims for services citywide during the same timeframe.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, federal and state Medicaid expenditures were estimated at $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, roughly 18% of overall health spending in the U.S., a sharp increase from approximately $613.5 billion in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This increase reflects roughly 40% growth in just a few years, driven primarily by broader program enrollment and higher utilization during and after the pandemic.

Recent federal budgetary measures passed during the Trump administration have proposed significant federal Medicaid cuts and program restructuring. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to reduce federal Medicaid funding by more than $1 trillion over the next ten years and includes work requirements and increased cost-sharing. These changes may decrease coverage and funding for certain beneficiaries, intensifying the fiscal burden on states even as Medicaid remains a major public insurance program serving tens of millions of people.

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.