Dalton Medicaid payments for ambulance services reach $12,739 in 2024, up 87% from prior year

Dalton Medicaid providers reported $12,739 in claims for Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies in 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. That figure represents an 87.2% rise from 2023, when providers billed $6,805 for the same category.

Medicaid is a state-administered, publicly funded health insurance program supported by both federal and state governments. It provides coverage for low-income individuals and families, seniors, children, and individuals with disabilities, making it a major component of the U.S. health care system.

Because Medicaid funding comes from taxpayers, fluctuations in local billing help illustrate how community health care resources are spent.

The “Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies” group encompasses Medicaid-billed services defined by the type of care, using assigned HCPCS and CPT code groupings. Each billing code for this report was placed into a single service category based on code prefixes and numeric ranges. This approach grouped related services together without duplicating claims, supporting accurate assessment over consecutive years.

While multiple service categories saw increased Medicaid spending, Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies was Dalton’s leading category by total Medicaid payments in 2024.

Statewide in New York, Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies ranked eighth for total Medicaid payments in 2024.

Across the five years before 2024, Dalton Medicaid payments for Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies rose by $12,739, or 0%. The upward trend included significant year-on-year increases in 2023 and 2022.

Although services in this category were available throughout the city, Medicaid payments were mainly concentrated in a small number of ZIP codes. In 2024, ZIP code 14836 accounted for $12,739, with this single ZIP code representing 100% of Dalton’s Medicaid spending for Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies that year.

Within the category, payments were also consolidated among just a few billing codes.

For context, Dalton saw an 87.2% increase in Medicaid payments for Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies between 2024 and 2023. Across all Medicaid claim categories in the city, the change for the same period was 77.1%.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services data shows that combined federal and state Medicaid spending totaled about $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, accounting for around 18% of national health expenditures. This is a sharp rise from roughly $613.5 billion in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The growth amounts to an increase of about 40% over several years, mostly due to expanded enrollment and greater use of services during and following the pandemic.

Recent federal budget measures under the Trump administration have included major proposals to reduce federal Medicaid spending and change program structure. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to cut more than $1 trillion in federal Medicaid funding over the next decade. It also introduces policy changes, such as work requirements and more cost-sharing, which may decrease coverage and funding for certain beneficiaries. These reforms could transfer more financial responsibility to states and slow the growth of federal Medicaid support while the program continues to serve millions of Americans.

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.