In 2024, Medicaid payments in San Luis Obispo reached at least $23,131 for services billed with HCPCS codes clearly designated for COVID-19, based on information from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database.
Medicaid is a state-administered, publicly funded health insurance system supported by both federal and state contributions. It provides coverage for low-income people and families, seniors, children, and people with disabilities, making it a critical component of the nation’s health care infrastructure.
As Medicaid payments are taxpayer-funded, shifts in local billing offer insight into how public health care funds are distributed within a community.
The analysis identified COVID-19–related services using HCPCS codes labeled or classified as “COVID-19” or “coronavirus”-related in billing descriptions or reference sources. Therefore, only services with codes directly labeled as COVID-related are included, and related medical care billed under different codes is not reflected in these figures.
By comparison, San Jose logged the highest amount of Medicaid payments for COVID-19 services in California during 2024, with $5,601,479 in virus-related claims.
Five providers in San Luis Obispo filed Medicaid claims for COVID-19–related services in 2024. The code COVID Specific accounted for $21,904, making it the most frequently billed code.
On average, Medicaid payments for COVID-19–related services per provider in San Luis Obispo were $4,626, which is below the statewide average of $52,976.
In the two years leading up to the pandemic, San Luis Obispo’s average annual Medicaid payments totaled $39,077,363.
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, federal and state Medicaid spending combined reached approximately $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, making up about 18% of total national health expenditures and rising sharply from $613.5 billion in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This increase marks about 40% growth in a short span, influenced mainly by increases in enrollment and service use during and following the pandemic.
Federal budget measures implemented during the Trump administration included proposals to cut Medicaid funds and reform the program. For example, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to reduce federal Medicaid spending by over $1 trillion in the next decade and introduces new requirements, such as work rules and higher cost-sharing, that could decrease both coverage and funding for some enrollees. These changes are predicted to transfer more financial responsibility to states and constrain future federal support, while Medicaid continues to serve tens of millions nationwide.
| Year | COVID-19–Related Payments | COVID-19 Payments % Change (YoY) | Total Medicaid Payments |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $23,131 | -91.2% | $47,216,013 |
| 2023 | $262,722 | -78.6% | $56,273,843 |
| 2022 | $1,226,800 | -61.9% | $50,619,406 |
| 2021 | $3,220,635 | -18.5% | $56,150,237 |
| 2020 | $3,950,698 | N/A | $59,415,330 |
| 2019 | $0 | N/A | $39,185,138 |
| 2018 | $0 | N/A | $38,969,589 |
| HCPCS Code | Description | Medicaid Payments | Claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| U0002 | COVID Specific | $19,851 | 1,319 |
| 87635 | COVID Specific | $2,052 | 58 |
| 90480 | COVID-19 Vaccine Administration | $1,227 | 58 |
Note: Totals reflect only HCPCS codes explicitly marked for COVID-19 services and do not include all health expenditures related to the pandemic.
Information included in this report was sourced from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. The complete dataset is available here.