Watchung Medicaid billings for alcohol, drug abuse treatment reach $224,986 in 2024

In 2024, Medicaid providers in Watchung billed $224,986 for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment services, data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Medicaid Provider Spending database show. This total represents a 14.1% increase compared with 2023, when $197,160 was billed for the same service category.

Medicaid operates as a public health insurance program administered by the states and funded in partnership between federal and state governments. It provides coverage for low-income residents, seniors, children, and those with disabilities, and is a central component of U.S. health care.

Since Medicaid funds derive from taxpayers, local spending trends indicate how public health care resources are distributed throughout a community.

The term “Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment” designates a specific set of Medicaid services based on the type of care given, organized using standardized HCPCS and CPT codes. For this report, billing codes were assigned to a single service group through unified code prefixes and number ranges, allowing analysis of related services as a single group and preventing double-counting or errors in rankings over time.

While Medicaid spending grew in several categories, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment was the second-highest Medicaid payment category in Watchung for 2024.

Statewide in New Jersey, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment ranked as the top Medicaid payment category for 2024.

From 2019 to 2024, Medicaid payments in Watchung linked to Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment climbed by $193,064—a 604.8% rise. Spending growth was especially strong during select years, with sharp annual increases in both 2022 and 2023.

Though funds for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment services were allocated throughout Watchung, payments were primarily focused within a small number of ZIP codes. In 2024, ZIP code 07069 recorded the highest total, reaching $224,985. All Medicaid payments within this category in Watchung for the year originated from the top ZIP code.

Payments under the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment services stemmed from a few key individual billing codes.

Between 2024 and 2023, Watchung’s Medicaid payments in this category rose 14.1%, while the increase across all Medicaid claim categories was 5.8% for the city in the same period.

According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, joint federal and state Medicaid expenditures reached approximately $871.7 billion in fiscal year 2023, comprising close to 18% of all national health spending. This is significantly above the about $613.5 billion spent in 2019 prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This growth equals about a 40% gain over several years, largely driven by expanded enrollment and increased care usage related to the pandemic period and afterwards.

Recent federal budgeting, including under the Trump administration, has introduced major proposals to reduce federal Medicaid allocations and modify the program’s funding model. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” enacted in 2025, is forecast to reduce federal Medicaid spending by more than $1 trillion over 10 years. It includes provisions such as work requirements and higher cost-sharing, changes that could lessen both coverage and funding for some individuals. These alterations would put more cost burden on states and may limit future increases in federal Medicaid contributions, even as the program continues to assist tens of 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.