Coyote Medicaid providers submitted at least $113 in COVID-19 claims in 2024

In 2024, providers in Coyote billed Medicaid for at least $113 using HCPCS codes clearly linked to COVID-19, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. This was a 56.9% increase over 2023, when providers submitted $72 in claims for those same codes.

Medicaid, a public health insurance program overseen by states and funded through both federal and state governments, supports low-income individuals and families, seniors, children, and those with disabilities, making it a significant part of the U.S. health care system.

Because taxpayer money finances Medicaid, fluctuations in local billing show how public health dollars are distributed in a region.

For this analysis, services identified as COVID-19–related used HCPCS codes with billing descriptions or reference data specifying “COVID-19” or “coronavirus.” Therefore, only services directly labeled as COVID-19 in billing data are reflected, and other pandemic-related services under broader codes are not included.

By comparison, Albuquerque had the highest amount of Medicaid payments linked to COVID-19 services in New Mexico for 2024, totaling $958,608 in virus-specific claims.

In Coyote, El Centro Family Health was the sole provider submitting Medicaid claims for COVID-19–related services during 2024.

During the pandemic years, spending on COVID-19–specific services made up a significant portion of Medicaid growth in Coyote.

For the two years before the pandemic, the average annual Medicaid payment amount in Coyote was $3,615.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, total federal and state Medicaid spending reached about $871.7 billion for fiscal year 2023, making up roughly 18% of all national health expenses and rising from approximately $613.5 billion in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

This increase marks growth of nearly 40% in several years, driven in large part by growth in enrollment and greater service use throughout and after the pandemic period.

Recent federal budget measures under the Trump administration have introduced major proposals to lower federal Medicaid outlays and change the structure of the program. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is set to cut over $1 trillion in federal Medicaid funding over the next decade and includes provisions such as work requirements and higher cost-sharing, which may affect coverage and funding for some recipients. These adjustments are anticipated to increase costs for states and hold down the rise in federal Medicaid support, even as the program continues serving tens of millions of Americans.

Note: Totals include only HCPCS codes specifically labeled for COVID-19 services and do not reflect all pandemic-related health care expenditures.

Data for this report was accessed from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database, available here.