WhereTaxMoneyGoesDepartment of Health and Human Services (HHS): federal spending, contracts and grants
In fiscal year 2026, Department of Health and Human Services reported $2.80 trillion in obligations and $2.69 trillion in outlays, about 22.9% of all budgetary resources tracked on USAspending. Below: where its award money went, who received the most, and how its spending has changed since FY 2017.
FY 2026 figures are still being reported by agencies and will change as late submissions arrive.
Mission
It is the mission of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) to enhance and protect the health and well-being of all Americans. We fulfill that mission by providing for effective health and human services and fostering advances in medicine, public health, and social services.
How HHS awarded money in FY 2026
Award obligations are the part of an agency's spending that goes out as contracts, grants, loans, direct payments and other awards to outside recipients. The rest pays for salaries, internal operations and transfers that are not awards.
| Award type | Amount | Relative size |
|---|---|---|
| Direct payments | $1.27 trillion | |
| Grants | $897.4 billion | |
| Contracts | $24.9 billion | |
| Other assistance | $8.0 billion | |
| Contract vehicles (IDVs) | $5.2 billion |
Obligations by fiscal year
FY 2026 obligations of $2.80 trillion were essentially flat compared with FY 2025 and compare with $1.65 trillion in FY 2017.
Show the numbers
| Fiscal year | Amount |
|---|---|
| FY 2026 | $2.80 trillion |
| FY 2025 | $2.79 trillion |
| FY 2024 | $2.52 trillion |
| FY 2023 | $2.48 trillion |
| FY 2022 | $2.45 trillion |
| FY 2021 | $2.36 trillion |
| FY 2020 | $2.20 trillion |
| FY 2019 | $1.81 trillion |
| FY 2018 | $1.68 trillion |
| FY 2017 | $1.65 trillion |
Top recipients, FY 2026
Ranked by award obligations from HHS. "Multiple recipients" groups aggregated or redacted records, such as payments to individuals.
| # | Recipient | Amount | Relative size |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Multiple recipients (aggregated) | $1.27 trillion | |
| 2 | Health Care Services, California Department of | $117.3 billion | |
| 3 | NYS Department of Health | $73.4 billion | |
| 4 | Health & Human SVC Commn TX | $39.1 billion | |
| 5 | PA Department of Human Services | $35.4 billion | |
| 6 | Ohio Department of Medicaid | $29.0 billion | |
| 7 | North Carolina Department of Health & Human Services | $28.9 billion | |
| 8 | Florida Agency for Health Care Administration | $27.9 billion | |
| 9 | Illinois Department of Healthcare & Family Services | $25.5 billion | |
| 10 | Michigan Department of Health and Human Services | $24.3 billion |
Top states, FY 2026
By place of performance — where the work is done or the money is used.
| # | State | Amount | Relative size |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minnesota | $200.8 billion | |
| 2 | California | $191.1 billion | |
| 3 | Pennsylvania | $165.8 billion | |
| 4 | Kentucky | $157.1 billion | |
| 5 | Indiana | $153.5 billion | |
| 6 | Florida | $122.2 billion | |
| 7 | New York | $115.4 billion | |
| 8 | Connecticut | $96.7 billion | |
| 9 | North Dakota | $96.1 billion | |
| 10 | South Carolina | $89.6 billion |
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Source data last updated November 4, 2026 · Imported November 6, 2026 · Dollar figures are nominal and rounded. How these numbers are calculated · Report a problem