At least $11,811 in Okmulgee Medicaid payments tied to COVID-19 in 2024

Okmulgee Medicaid providers received at least $11,811 in payments for 2024 from services recorded under HCPCS codes specifically linked to COVID-19, data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database shows.

Medicaid, operated at the state level and financed through joint efforts by federal and state governments, provides coverage to low-income people and families, seniors, children and people with disabilities. It remains a major component of the health care system in the United States.

As Medicaid is funded by taxpayers, shifts in the amount billed locally highlight how these community health care dollars are distributed.

This review used HCPCS codes categorized as “COVID-19” or as “coronavirus”-related in billing records or references to count virus-specific services. Reported totals thus represent only those services clearly identified with COVID-19, omitting any relevant care coded differently in Medicaid documentation.

For reference, Lawton led the state in Medicaid payments for COVID-19 services in 2024, submitting $1,223,479 in claims connecting to the virus, among cities in Oklahoma.

The records show Medrite Health LLC was the sole provider in Okmulgee submitting claims for COVID-19–coded Medicaid services in 2024.

COVID-19–related services represented a notable portion of the increase in Medicaid expenses in Okmulgee during the pandemic period.

Total payments across all other categories saw an upturn of $1,201,104 between 2021 and 2024—an increase of 30.2%.

The two years prior to the pandemic, Okmulgee’s average yearly Medicaid payment amounted to $2,688,976.

As reported by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, total federal and state spending on Medicaid reached approximately $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, or about 18% of all U.S. health care expenditures. This is a sharp increase from the $613.5 billion reported in 2019 before the COVID-19 outbreak.

This jump, amounting to around 40% growth in less than five years, is mainly attributed to higher enrollment and elevated demand for services throughout and after the pandemic.

Recent federal legislation adopted in the Trump administration contains substantial plans to decrease federal Medicaid aid and restructure the system. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed into law in 2025, is forecast to slash federal Medicaid spending by more than $1 trillion over the coming decade and brings in mandates such as increased cost-sharing and work requirements. These adjustments are expected to shrink federal support, shift greater responsibility to states, and alter coverage options for certain beneficiaries, but Medicaid will continue serving millions nationwide.

Note: Includes HCPCS codes explicitly labeled for COVID-19 services; totals do not represent all pandemic-related health care spending.

This article relied on U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database records. Original data source is located here.