Yesterday, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that two million Americans have signed up for insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces during President Biden’s special enrollment period. The Biden administration opened the SEP to ensure people could get coverage as they faced economic hardship and job loss as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Importantly, many of the new enrollees have been able to take advantage of the dramatic savings under the American Rescue Plan, with more than a third of new and returning enrollees selecting plans for $10 or less per month. Coverage of this historic enrollment period makes it clear that the wave of signups are a direct result of the American Rescue Plan’s provisions to dramatically reduce premiums costs.
HEADLINES:
The Hill: More Than 2 Million Sign Up During Obamacare Special Enrollment Period. “A total of 1.5 million Americans have enrolled in coverage through HealthCare.gov throughout the special signup period, while another 600,000 have signed up through the 15 state-based marketplaces, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.” [7/14/21]
New York Times: Obamacare Enrollments Have Risen By 2 Million, Reaching A Record High, Since Biden Reopened Them In February. “The increases reflect a growing demand for insurance coverage during the pandemic, when many Americans lost job-based coverage or became more worried about remaining uninsured. But they also reflect major policy changes this year: Congress passed legislation that substantially lowered the price of insurance for nearly all Americans buying their own coverage.” [7/14/21]
HuffPost: Obamacare Marketplace Sign-Ups Pass 2 Million, Likely Pushing Down Uninsured Rate. “That figure means total marketplace enrollment is probably at an all-time high, while the number of uninsured Americans may be at an all-time low. In both cases, a big reason would be a set of temporary improvements to the Affordable Care Act that Biden and Democrats are now trying to make permanent.” [7/14/21]
Roll Call: HHS 2 Million People Choose Health Plans During Enrollment Period. “Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure told reporters the agency doesn’t have updated numbers of the total number of people enrolled in marketplace plans, but she called it a “fair assumption” that marketplace enrollment is at an all-time high.” [7/14/21]
CNN: More Than 2 Million Americans Sign Up For Affordable Care Act Coverage Under Biden’s Special Enrollment Period. “Some 1.5 million people have signed up on the federal exchange, healthcare.gov, while more than 600,000 have selected policies in the 14 states and the District of Columbia that run their own exchanges. In addition, among new and returning consumers who have selected a plan since April 1, some 1.2 million, or 34%, picked policies that cost $10 or less per month when factoring in the enhanced premium subsidies made available by the Democrats’ $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. About 2.5 million enrollees have returned to the exchange to see what’s available.” [7/14/21]
Reuters: Over Two Million Americans Sign Up For Obamacare Under Biden Drive. “About 1.5 million Americans opted to sign up for insurance on U.S. government website Healthcare.gov while 600,000 more enrolled in coverage through the 15 state-based marketplaces.” [7/14/21]
Becker’s Hospital Review: ACA Special Enrollment Exceeds 2 Million. “The majority of enrollees used healthcare.gov (1.5 million) while the rest (600,000) used a state marketplace. Both numbers are sure to grow as the SEP spans through Aug. 15, but Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program membership are at a record-high 81 million.” [7/14/21]
MSNBC (Maddow Blog): Biden’s ACA Special Enrollment Period Reaches 2 Million Americans. “Some will see their premiums cut in half, while millions will see their premiums fall to literally zero, thanks entirely to the investments in the American Rescue Plan. That’s working well, too: the Department of Health and Human Services recently announced that after the new ACA benefits kicked in on April 1, nearly 2 million consumers — who already had coverage — returned to the marketplace and reduced their monthly premiums.” [7/14/21]