Largo Medicaid COVID-19 claims reach $19,086 in 2024, less than 0.1% of total payments

In Largo, Medicaid providers received at least $19,086 in 2024 for services billed under HCPCS codes specifically tied to COVID-19, according to figures from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. This marks a 58.8% rise from 2023, when such claims under those codes totaled $12,018.

Medicaid is operated by states and funded in partnership with the federal government. The program covers low-income families and individuals, seniors, children and people with disabilities, making it a significant component of the U.S. health system.

Since Medicaid funding comes directly from public resources, shifts in local billing reflect how health care expenditures are distributed within communities.

This analysis identified COVID-19–related services by selecting HCPCS codes designated or referenced as “COVID-19” or “coronavirus” in billing descriptions or supporting data. The results include only those services explicitly categorized as COVID-19–related in Medicaid billing and may not account for pandemic-related care billed under broader medical codes.

Elsewhere in Florida, Miami posted the highest total for Medicaid COVID-19 payments in 2024 with $270,279 in virus-related claims.

In Largo, five providers reported Medicaid claims for COVID-19 services during 2024. The most frequently billed code was COVID Specific, which made up $19,064 of the total.

To compare, the average Medicaid payment per provider for COVID-19–related services in Largo was $3,817, less than the Florida statewide average of $7,271.

During pandemic years, COVID-19–specific services contributed significantly to overall Medicaid spending growth in Largo.

Total Medicaid payments for all other claim categories grew by $2,239,847 from 2020 to 2024, an increase of 8.7%.

In the two-year period before the pandemic, average yearly Medicaid payments in Largo were $13,582,835.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reports that combined state and federal spending on Medicaid was about $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, representing nearly 18% of all national health care expenditures, a significant rise from approximately $613.5 billion in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This rise translates to an increase of about 40% in just a few years, attributed largely to expanded enrollment and greater service use during and after the pandemic.

Recent federal budget measures under the Trump administration featured major proposed reductions to federal Medicaid funding and efforts to restructure the program. For instance, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed in 2025, is set to cut over $1 trillion in federal Medicaid spending over the next decade and adds requirements such as work policies and increased cost-sharing, which could limit funding and coverage for some recipients. These adjustments are intended to shift additional financial responsibility to states and cap federal Medicaid growth, while the program continues to cover tens of millions of Americans.

Note: Figures include only HCPCS codes explicitly labeled for COVID-19 services and do not account for all health care expenses tied to the pandemic.

All data for this report was sourced from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. The full dataset is available here.