Columbia Medicaid providers billed a total of $7,360,968 for services categorized under Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment in 2024, based on figures from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. This represented an 11.7% rise from 2023, when billing came to $6,591,408 for the same services.
Medicaid is operated by the states and funded jointly with federal and state dollars. The program provides insurance to low-income individuals and families, seniors, children, and people with disabilities, making it a key part of the U.S. health care system.
Since Medicaid payments are financed by taxpayers, fluctuations in local billing reflect how public health funds are distributed within each community.
The “Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment” category encompasses a defined group of Medicaid-billed services determined by the specific type of care provided, based on standardized HCPCS and CPT code groupings. For this report, each billing code was placed into a single service category, using uniform code prefixes and number ranges to properly group related services, avoid overlap, and maintain reliable rankings over time.
While Medicaid spending grew across a range of service types, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment placed fifth in Columbia for total Medicaid payments in 2024.
Across Maryland, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment was the top category for Medicaid payments statewide in 2024.
Reviewing the five years leading up to 2024, Medicaid payments for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment in Columbia rose by $928,276, a 14.4% increase. Spending growth was particularly strong in select years, with significant jumps recorded in 2023 and 2020.
Medicaid spending for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment services was seen citywide, but most payments were focused in a few ZIP codes. In 2024, ZIP code 21045 accounted for $3,740,012, ZIP code 21046 brought in $3,521,460, and ZIP code 21044 totaled $99,494. Combined, these 3 ZIP codes made up 100% of Columbia’s Medicaid payments for this service category during the year.
Within Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment, Medicaid reimbursements concentrated among a small subset of billing codes.
To compare, Columbia’s Medicaid payments for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment increased 11.7% from 2023 to 2024, while payments across all Medicaid claim categories in the city grew by 4.8% in the same period.
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, combined federal and state Medicaid spending was approximately $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, representing about 18% of national health expenditures—a sharp rise from roughly $613.5 billion in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
This increase of about 40% over several years is mainly attributed to expanded enrollment and increased utilization during and after the pandemic.
Recent federal budget measures under the Trump administration have proposed major cuts to federal Medicaid funding and policy changes. For instance, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to cut over $1 trillion in federal Medicaid spending across the next decade, with provisions like work requirements and higher cost-sharing that could reduce both coverage and funds for some recipients. These changes are anticipated to shift more Medicaid costs to the states and slow federal support, even as the program continues to serve tens of millions nationwide.
| Year | Total Medicaid Payments | % Change From Previous Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $6,432,692 | 5.7% |
| 2021 | $5,887,054 | -8.5% |
| 2022 | $5,927,276 | 0.7% |
| 2023 | $6,591,408 | 11.2% |
| 2024 | $7,360,967 | 11.7% |
| Rank | Category | Medicaid Payments | Share of City Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Temporary National Codes (Non-Medicare) | $15,681,421 | 24.3% |
| 2 | Temporary Codes | $12,575,265 | 19.5% |
| 3 | Medicine Services and Procedures | $11,570,082 | 18% |
| 4 | Evaluation and Management | $10,409,836 | 16.2% |
| 5 | Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment | $7,360,967 | 11.4% |
| 6 | Pathology and Laboratory Procedures | $1,950,326 | 3% |
| 7 | Dental Services | $913,336 | 1.4% |
| 8 | Surgery | $732,971 | 1.1% |
| 9 | Anesthesia | $700,740 | 1.1% |
| 10 | Enteral and Parenteral Therapy | $658,333 | 1% |
| 11 | National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies | $454,242 | 0.7% |
| 12 | Radiology Procedures | $427,713 | 0.7% |
| 13 | Diagnostic Radiology Services | $279,698 | 0.4% |
| 14 | Procedures / Professional Services | $258,896 | 0.4% |
| 15 | Medical And Surgical Supplies | $161,814 | 0.3% |
| 16 | Drugs Administered Other than Oral Method | $116,946 | 0.2% |
| 17 | Durable Medical Equipment | $90,590 | 0.1% |
| 18 | Chemotherapy Drugs | $45,256 | 0.1% |
| 19 | Vision Services | $29,907 | <0.1% |
| 20 | Hearing Services | $403 | <0.1% |
| 21 | Administrative, Miscellaneous and Investigational | $0 | <0.1% |
| HCPCS Code | Description | Medicaid Payments | Claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| H2016 | Comp comm supp svc, per diem | $3,023,275 | 22 |
| H0044 | Supported housing, per month | $1,609,408 | 45 |
| H0040 | Assert comm tx pgm per diem | $812,273 | 22 |
| H0020 | Alcohol and/or drug services | $661,320 | 13 |
| H0032 | Mh svc plan dev by non-md | $366,120 | 44 |
| H0015 | Alcohol and/or drug services | $342,160 | 10 |
| H0004 | Alcohol and/or drug services | $253,436 | 19 |
| H2036 | A/d tx program, per diem | $253,185 | 4 |
| H2012 | Behav hlth day treat, per hr | $14,516 | 2 |
| H2018 | Psysoc rehab svc, per diem | $13,142 | 2 |
| H0002 | Alcohol and/or drug screenin | $3,602 | 2 |
| H1000 | Prenatal care atrisk assessm | $3,440 | 5 |
| H0001 | Alcohol and/or drug assess | $2,868 | 1 |
| H0037 | Comm psy sup tx pgm per diem | $2,217 | 1 |
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.