In 2024, Arlington Medicaid providers reported $6,173,414 in billings for services under the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment category, based on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending data. This total represents an 8.4% increase from 2023, when claim submissions reached $5,696,651 for such services.
Medicaid is administered by states and jointly financed by federal and state governments, providing health coverage for low-income families and individuals, seniors, children, and people with disabilities, and it is a significant component of the U.S. health care system.
Because Medicaid expenditures rely on public funding, changes in levels of local billing reflect how community health care funds are distributed.
The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment category includes a collection of Medicaid-billed services as specified by standardized HCPCS and CPT codes. For this review, each billing code is placed into one service category using consistent prefixes and ranges, which allows systematic grouping for trend analysis, prevents double counting, and supports ranking accuracy.
Among various Medicaid service categories, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment placed third in Arlington’s rankings by total Medicaid spending in 2024.
Statewide, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment ranked fourth by total Medicaid payments in Washington in 2024.
Between 2019 and 2024, Arlington’s Medicaid payments associated with Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment rose by $3,943,181, which is a 176.8% growth. This increase accelerated during certain intervals, particularly with notable gains between 2021 and 2022.
Payment distribution across Arlington for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment was not uniform; in 2024, the majority of spending was concentrated in a small number of ZIP codes. The 98223 ZIP code accounted for $6,173,414 out of the city’s total. Collectively, the top ZIP code represented 100% of the Medicaid payments for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment in Arlington in 2024.
Medicaid claims within Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment also clustered around specific billing codes.
Looking at trends, the 8.4% rise in Arlington Medicaid payments tied to Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment between 2024 and 2023 exceeded the 5% overall increase seen across all Medicaid categories in the city over the same time frame.
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, federal and state Medicaid outlays totaled approximately $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, comprising about 18% of all national health costs. This figure represents a sharp increase from roughly $613.5 billion in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This jump reflects a roughly 40% rise over several years, primarily due to expanded enrollment and higher service utilization during and after the pandemic.
Under the Trump administration, recent federal budget measures have included sizable recommendations to scale back federal Medicaid funding and modify the program’s structure. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, aims to reduce federal Medicaid funding by more than $1 trillion in the coming decade. It introduces provisions like work requirements and higher cost-sharing, which could decrease coverage and funding for certain beneficiaries. These revisions are expected to shift increased costs to state budgets and may constrain federal Medicaid growth while the program continues to serve tens of millions nationwide.
| Year | Total Medicaid Payments | % Change From Previous Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $2,230,232 | -3.8% |
| 2021 | $2,949,704 | 32.3% |
| 2022 | $4,355,238 | 47.6% |
| 2023 | $5,696,650 | 30.8% |
| 2024 | $6,173,414 | 8.4% |
| Rank | Category | Medicaid Payments | Share of City Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies | $48,035,664 | 67.3% |
| 2 | Evaluation and Management | $14,960,766 | 21% |
| 3 | Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment | $6,173,414 | 8.7% |
| 4 | Medicine Services and Procedures | $1,101,009 | 1.5% |
| 5 | Radiology Procedures | $506,843 | 0.7% |
| 6 | Surgery | $215,651 | 0.3% |
| 7 | Pathology and Laboratory Procedures | $183,161 | 0.3% |
| 8 | Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies | $59,894 | 0.1% |
| 9 | Drugs Administered Other than Oral Method | $27,037 | <0.1% |
| 10 | Procedures / Professional Services | $21,477 | <0.1% |
| 11 | Outpatient PPS | $18,222 | <0.1% |
| 12 | Temporary Codes | $15,142 | <0.1% |
| 13 | Anesthesia | $10,546 | <0.1% |
| 14 | Administrative, Miscellaneous and Investigational | $458 | <0.1% |
| 15 | Vision Services | $247 | <0.1% |
| 16 | Medical And Surgical Supplies | $52 | <0.1% |
| 17 | Temporary National Codes (Non-Medicare) | $0 | <0.1% |
| HCPCS Code | Description | Medicaid Payments | Claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| H0018 | Alcohol and/or drug services | $3,186,716 | 12 |
| H0020 | Alcohol and/or drug services | $1,475,250 | 12 |
| H0004 | Alcohol and/or drug services | $674,353 | 48 |
| H2023 | Supported employ, per 15 min | $309,177 | 12 |
| H0043 | Supported housing, per diem | $237,316 | 11 |
| H2036 | A/d tx program, per diem | $233,686 | 12 |
| H2027 | Psychoed svc, per 15 min | $54,616 | 12 |
| H0001 | Alcohol and/or drug assess | $1,849 | 1 |
| H0038 | Self-help/peer svc per 15min | $447 | 2 |
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.
