At least $33,181 in Medicaid payments in Pendleton linked to COVID-19 care in 2024

In 2024, at least $33,181 in Medicaid payments were made in Pendleton for services billed under HCPCS codes specifically linked to COVID-19, according to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database.

Medicaid, a public health insurance program sponsored by the states and funded jointly by federal and state governments, serves low-income people and families, seniors, children and those with disabilities. This makes it one of the core elements of the U.S. health care system.

Because Medicaid relies on taxpayer funds, shifts in local claims for reimbursement help illustrate how public health care resources are distributed in a community.

For this report, COVID-19–related services were flagged using HCPCS codes described as “COVID-19” or “coronavirus”-related in their billing details or reference data. Therefore, these amounts capture only services specifically marked as COVID-related in the billing records and do not include pandemic-related care coded under broader or alternative descriptions.

To compare, Portland led Oregon with the highest 2024 Medicaid payments for COVID-19 services, totaling $760,710 in related claims.

In 2024, four providers in Pendleton submitted Medicaid claims for COVID-19–related care. The COVID Specific code was the largest category, accounting for $32,617 in billed services.

Across Pendleton, the average Medicaid payment per provider for COVID-19–related services reached $8,295, which was below Oregon’s state average of $11,526 per provider.

COVID-19–specific services contributed significantly to overall Medicaid spending increases in Pendleton during the height of the pandemic.

Looking at all other claim types, Medicaid payments rose by $1,811,475 in Pendleton from 2020 through 2024, an increase of 12.3%.

During the two years before the pandemic, average annual Medicaid payments in Pendleton totaled $13,782,536.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, combined federal and state expenditures on Medicaid reached about $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, about 18% of total national health spending and a sharp increase from $613.5 billion in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This jump represents approximately 40% growth in just a few years, attributed mainly to increased enrollment and utilization of services during and after the pandemic period.

Recent federal budget laws enacted during the Trump administration have featured significant measures to decrease federal Medicaid funding and modify the program’s structure. For instance, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” passed in 2025, is estimated to reduce federal Medicaid spending by more than $1 trillion over 10 years and introduces measures such as work requirements and higher cost-sharing that may decrease coverage or funding for some recipients. These adjustments are expected to transfer additional costs to states and slow the growth of federal Medicaid support, while the program continues to aid millions of Americans.

Note: Includes HCPCS codes specifically labeled for COVID-19 services; figures do not reflect all pandemic-related health care spending.

The information in this report comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. The data source is available here.