Nearly 11.7 million people signed up for health coverage in state and federal marketplaces under the Affordable Care Act, the Obama administration said Monday.
The latest numbers on the second year of open enrollment are a tangible sign the health law is effective, Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell said Monday during a White House event to thank stakeholders who helped during the sign-up period.
“Thanks to your efforts, we’re finally moving the needle of lowering the number of uninsured,” said Ms. Burwell. The nearly 11.7 million include people who signed up or were re-enrolled in plans through Feb. 22. They haven’t necessarily paid their premiums yet.
More than half of consumers who signed up on the federal exchange, HealthCare.gov, are new customers, she said. And nearly 7.7 million of the new and returning consumers on the federal exchange qualified for an average tax credit of $263 a month.
More than half on the federal exchange will pay $100 or less a month after tax credits to reduce the price of their premiums, Ms. Burwell said.
The robust enrollment figures are threatened by a Supreme Court challenge to subsidies through the HealthCare.gov. The high court on March 4 heard oral arguments in the case, with a decision expected by June. Opponents of the ACA argue the statutory language allows subsidies only for consumers who buy health insurance through state-run exchanges—not HealthCare.gov.
“The consumers don’t want it taken away,” said Ms. Burwell. “They don’t want to go back to the days when quality care was unaffordable.”
If plaintiffs prevail and subsidies on HealthCare.gov are struck down, millions of consumers would lose subsidies and likely drop coverage. Premiums for individual plans both on and off the exchanges would also rise. Unsubsidized premiums for individuals would rise 47% in states using the federal marketplace, according to a projection by the research firm Rand Corp.
The Obama administration said in February it would allow consumers to sign up for insurance plans on the federal exchange from March 15 through April, coinciding with the tax season. The extension beyond the Feb. 15 open enrollment deadline is aimed at helping people who owe a tax penalty for not having coverage sign up for coverage and avoid the fine.
The health law’s exchanges allow consumers to go online and obtain coverage and apply for subsidies to offset insurance premiums. About 8.6 million of the sign ups came through the federal exchange serving 37 states that opted not to run their own exchanges or ran into technical troubles trying to do so, the Obama administration said earlier.
That means the Obama administration is on target to reach its goal of having up to 10 million consumers paid up and enrolled in plans at the end of 2015.
About 1.5 million people in Florida qualified for average tax credits of nearly $300 a month, and about one million in Texas qualified for average credits of about $240 a month, said Ms. Burwell. The two big states use HealthCare.gov.
Ms. Burwell said those who support the Supreme Court case believe the health law should be overturned or repealed.
“We’re here and we’re not going to let it go,” Rep. Sandy Levin, (D., Mich.) said at the event. “By the way, we don’t want anyone taking it away from us either.”
Date: March 9, 2015