In Dekalb, Medicaid providers billed $3,605,826 for services categorized as Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment in 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. This reflected a 1.4% rise compared with 2023, when providers submitted $3,554,338 in claims for the same type of service.
Medicaid is a public health insurance program managed by states and funded jointly by federal and state governments. The program covers low-income individuals and families, seniors, children, and people with disabilities, making it a significant portion of the U.S. health care system.
Because Medicaid is financed by taxpayers, fluctuations in local billing reveal how public health care funds are distributed within a community.
The Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment category covers a group of Medicaid-billed services based on the care provided, relying on standardized HCPCS and CPT code groupings. Each billing code analyzed for this category was assigned to a single service grouping using code prefixes and numeric ranges to prevent duplication and ensure consistent year-over-year comparisons.
Medicaid spending on Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment held the top spot among service categories by total payment in Dekalb in 2024, even as spending increased in several other categories.
Statewide in Illinois, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment placed third by overall Medicaid payments in 2024.
Looking back over the five years before 2024, Dekalb’s Medicaid payments in the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment category grew by $474,753, or 11.6%. Notable increases in year-over-year spending occurred in 2023 and 2020.
Payments for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment in Dekalb were distributed citywide but were most significant in certain ZIP codes. In 2024, ZIP code 60115 accounted for $3,605,825, reflecting 100% of citywide Medicaid payments in this category that year.
Within the category, Medicaid payments in Dekalb were concentrated among a limited range of individual billing codes.
To compare, between 2024 and 2023, Medicaid payments in Dekalb’s Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment category rose by 1.4%, whereas total Medicaid claim categories in the city saw a 4.6% increase over the same period.
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, combined federal and state Medicaid spending reached approximately $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, representing about 18% of total national health expenditures. That is up sharply from about $613.5 billion in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This marks an increase of nearly 40% over a few years, largely due to expanded enrollment and greater usage since the onset of the pandemic.
Recent federal budget measures under the Trump administration have included significant proposals to reduce federal Medicaid funding and overhaul aspects of the program. For instance, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed in 2025, is projected to cut more than $1 trillion from federal Medicaid spending over the next decade. The act also introduces work requirements and higher cost-sharing that could reduce certain beneficiaries’ coverage and funding. These changes are expected to increase the financial burden on states and restrict the expansion of federal Medicaid funding, while the program remains a crucial resource for tens of millions of Americans.
| Year | Total Medicaid Payments | % Change From Previous Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $4,080,579 | 12.7% |
| 2021 | $2,754,437 | -32.5% |
| 2022 | $2,999,925 | 8.9% |
| 2023 | $3,554,337 | 18.5% |
| 2024 | $3,605,825 | 1.4% |
| Rank | Category | Medicaid Payments | Share of City Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment | $3,605,825 | 44.9% |
| 2 | Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies | $2,351,347 | 29.2% |
| 3 | Medical And Surgical Supplies | $685,405 | 8.5% |
| 4 | National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies | $422,347 | 5.3% |
| 5 | Orthotic Procedures and services | $309,694 | 3.9% |
| 6 | Medicine Services and Procedures | $291,149 | 3.6% |
| 7 | Durable Medical Equipment | $241,127 | 3% |
| 8 | Temporary National Codes (Non-Medicare) | $59,619 | 0.7% |
| 9 | Evaluation and Management | $33,313 | 0.4% |
| 10 | Pathology and Laboratory Procedures | $22,313 | 0.3% |
| 11 | Procedures / Professional Services | $11,969 | 0.1% |
| 12 | Drugs Administered Other than Oral Method | $4,717 | 0.1% |
| HCPCS Code | Description | Medicaid Payments | Claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| H0004 | Alcohol and/or drug services | $1,637,579 | 58 |
| H2015 | Comp comm supp svc, 15 min | $786,894 | 35 |
| H2000 | Comp multidisipln evaluation | $649,114 | 45 |
| H0005 | Alcohol and/or drug services | $255,225 | 13 |
| H2016 | Comp comm supp svc, per diem | $199,473 | 12 |
| H2011 | Crisis interven svc, 15 min | $71,642 | 6 |
| H0002 | Alcohol and/or drug screenin | $5,895 | 4 |
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.
