In 2024, Medicaid providers in Gig Harbor billed $344,503 for services categorized as Dental Services, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database. This total was up 0.5% compared with 2023, when claims for the same services reached $342,752.
Medicaid is a state-run public health insurance program with funding from both federal and state governments. It serves low-income people and families, seniors, children, and individuals with disabilities, making it a major segment of the U.S. health care system.
With Medicaid payments funded by taxpayer dollars, shifts in local billing levels reflect how public health funding is distributed within the community.
The “Dental Services” grouping includes Medicaid-billed services based on the type of dental care delivered, as determined by standardized HCPCS and CPT code ranges. Service categories were assigned by code range, allowing for consistent analysis across related services without duplication or miscounting, enabling accurate year-to-year comparisons.
Dental Services represented the eighth highest Medicaid payment category in Gig Harbor for 2024, despite growth across several service types.
Statewide, Dental Services ranked ninth in total Medicaid payments in Washington in 2024.
Over the five years before 2024, Medicaid spending for Dental Services in Gig Harbor increased $202,940, or 143.4%. The pace of growth accelerated in some years, including significant jumps in 2021 and 2023.
Within Gig Harbor, Dental Services spending was spread citywide but concentrated in just a few ZIP codes. In 2024, ZIP code 98335 saw $296,517 in payments, 98338 recorded $45,972, and 98332 accounted for $2,012. These top 3 ZIP codes made up 100% of all city payments for Dental Services that year.
Medicaid payments within the Dental Services category were focused in a limited range of individual billing codes.
To compare, Dental Services payments in Gig Harbor rose 0.5% from 2023 to 2024, while all Medicaid claim categories in the city saw a 5.4% change during the same period.
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, combined federal and state Medicaid payments reached about $871.7 billion during fiscal year 2023, making up roughly 18% of total U.S. health expenditures—a marked increase from the approximately $613.5 billion in 2019 prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This jump marks a rise of nearly 40% within several years, fueled by expanded enrollment and higher usage during and after the pandemic timeframe.
Federal budget measures under the Trump administration have included major proposals to lower federal Medicaid expenses and overhaul aspects of the program. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed in 2025, aims to reduce federal Medicaid funding by over $1 trillion in the upcoming decade, brings in work requirements, and increases cost-sharing, changes projected to limit coverage and federal support for certain beneficiaries. These shifts are anticipated to move more Medicaid expenses to the states and restrict federal funding growth, though the program still covers tens of millions nationwide.
| Year | Total Medicaid Payments | % Change From Previous Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $141,562 | -24.4% |
| 2021 | $201,632 | 42.4% |
| 2022 | $259,117 | 28.5% |
| 2023 | $342,751 | 32.3% |
| 2024 | $344,503 | 0.5% |
| Rank | Category | Medicaid Payments | Share of City Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Medicine Services and Procedures | $2,758,291 | 34.9% |
| 2 | Evaluation and Management | $1,074,145 | 13.6% |
| 3 | Ambulance and Other Transport Services and Supplies | $922,242 | 11.7% |
| 4 | National Codes Established for State Medicaid Agencies | $680,752 | 8.6% |
| 5 | Enteral and Parenteral Therapy | $585,541 | 7.4% |
| 6 | Radiology Procedures | $405,797 | 5.1% |
| 7 | Medical And Surgical Supplies | $360,170 | 4.6% |
| 8 | Dental Services | $344,503 | 4.4% |
| 9 | Durable Medical Equipment | $247,638 | 3.1% |
| 10 | Temporary National Codes (Non-Medicare) | $181,363 | 2.3% |
| 11 | Durable medical equipment (DME) Medicare administrative contractors (MACs) | $118,118 | 1.5% |
| 12 | Pathology and Laboratory Procedures | $68,325 | 0.9% |
| 13 | Surgery | $60,801 | 0.8% |
| 14 | Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment | $47,476 | 0.6% |
| 15 | Drugs Administered Other than Oral Method | $28,031 | 0.4% |
| 16 | Procedures / Professional Services | $24,563 | 0.3% |
| 17 | Temporary Codes | $80 | <0.1% |
| 18 | Administrative, Miscellaneous and Investigational | $4 | <0.1% |
| 19 | Outpatient PPS | $0 | <0.1% |
| HCPCS Code | Description | Medicaid Payments | Claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| D0120 | Periodic oral evaluation | $183,811 | 45 |
| D0150 | Comprehensve oral evaluation | $31,442 | 20 |
| D0220 | Intraoral periapical first | $27,884 | 41 |
| D0140 | Limit oral eval problm focus | $26,176 | 34 |
| D0330 | Panoramic image | $25,611 | 19 |
| D0274 | Bitewings four images | $21,633 | 17 |
| D0272 | Dental bitewings two images | $16,297 | 40 |
| D0230 | Intraoral periapical ea add | $9,438 | 37 |
| D0240 | Intraoral occlusal film | $1,487 | 6 |
| D0340 | 2d cephalometric image | $717 | 1 |
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.
