Schertz Medicaid billed $1,641 for COVID-19 services in 2024

Schertz recorded a minimum of $1,641 in Medicaid payments for COVID-19–specific services in 2024, based on billing under HCPCS codes that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database identifies as related to the virus.

Medicaid, a major public health insurance system overseen by states and funded by both federal and state governments, provides coverage to low-income individuals, families, children, seniors and people with disabilities, and is one of the backbone programs of U.S. health care.

Since Medicaid is taxpayer-funded, shifts in local claims illustrate how public health care funds are distributed across the community.

Researchers identified COVID-19–related Medicaid claims using HCPCS codes that were labeled or categorized as “COVID-19” or “coronavirus” within billing or reference data. These figures include only those services directly marked as COVID-related and exclude any care tied to the pandemic but billed under broader or alternative codes.

In comparison, Houston reported the highest volume of Medicaid payments for COVID-19 services in Texas in 2024, amounting to $5,684,946 in such claims.

Data indicate that Kinder Haus Pediatrics was the sole provider making Medicaid claims for COVID-19–related services in Schertz for 2024.

COVID-19–specific services made up a noticeable component of the increase in Medicaid spending in Schertz during the pandemic years.

Claim data show other Medicaid payment categories rose by $690,906 from 2020 to 2024, which marks a 153.3% increase.

Average annual Medicaid claims in Schertz reached $441,632 over the two years prior to the pandemic.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, combined federal and state spending on Medicaid climbed to about $871.7 billion in fiscal 2023, comprising approximately 18% of all U.S. health expenditures, which was up from $613.5 billion in 2019, before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This represents almost 40% growth over several years and is largely attributed to increased enrollments and use during and after the pandemic.

Federal budget legislation passed during the Trump administration contained multiple plans to cut and restructure federal Medicaid funding. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is expected to reduce federal Medicaid spending by more than $1 trillion over 10 years and introduces additional beneficiary requirements, such as work obligations and greater cost sharing, which could limit coverage and federal support for some recipients. This is anticipated to put more financial responsibility on states and slow the growth rate of federal Medicaid support, even as the program cares for tens of millions nationally.

Note: Totals only reflect HCPCS codes explicitly listed for COVID-19 services and do not account for all health care spending tied to the pandemic.

This article is based on information drawn from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database, available here.