Pagosa Springs Medicaid spending for ambulance and transport services hits $22,993 in 2024

Pagosa Springs Medicaid providers recorded $22,993 in claims for Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies in 2024, data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database shows. This amount represents a 58.8% rise versus 2023, when local providers sought $14,482 for the same service category.

Medicaid is a public health insurance initiative operated by states with joint funding from the federal and state governments. The program offers coverage to low-income families, seniors, children and individuals with disabilities and is a major component of the U.S. health system.

As Medicaid dollars are from taxpayer funds, fluctuations in local billing highlight how health care resources are deployed within a city.

The “Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies” group encompasses Medicaid-billed services defined by care type and based on guidelines from HCPCS and CPT coding. For this analysis, each billing code was matched to a single service group using standardized code descriptors, supporting category-specific review, avoiding duplicate counts, and ensuring accurate rankings.

While Medicaid spending grew across numerous categories, Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies represented the fourth largest Medicaid payment category in Pagosa Springs for 2024.

Statewide, this category was the second largest by Medicaid payment in Colorado for the same year.

Over the five years to 2024, Medicaid payments for the Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies category in Pagosa Springs climbed by $15,066, an increase of 190%. Spending surged in specific years, with significant jumps observed in 2023 and 2022.

Spending for Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies was spread throughout Pagosa Springs, but a few ZIP codes saw most of the payments. In 2024, ZIP code 81147 saw total Medicaid payments reach $22,993, accounting for all Medicaid payments for the category in the city that year.

Medicaid payments were also highly concentrated among just a handful of billing codes within this category.

From 2023 to 2024, Pagosa Springs experienced a 58.8% increase in Medicaid payments for Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies, outpacing the 45.3% increase seen across all Medicaid claim categories in the city during that same timeframe.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, combined state and federal Medicaid expenditures totaled about $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, representing 18% of the nation’s health spending—up from roughly $613.5 billion in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.

This growth equals about a 40% increase over several years, spurred by expanded enrollment and greater demand for services during and after the public health emergency.

The Trump administration’s recent federal budget legislation introduced several measures aimed at decreasing federal Medicaid contributions and implementing structural reforms. Notably, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is estimated to reduce federal Medicaid outlays by over $1 trillion over 10 years. The act’s provisions—like work requirements and higher cost-sharing—could lower funding and coverage for some enrollees, putting more financial responsibility on states while federal support slows, despite the program’s ongoing reach to tens of millions.

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.