While fewer people purchased coverage through the federal Healthcare.gov site in the 2017 open enrollment period, the 11 states (and the District of Columbia) that run their own exchanges saw a slight increase in sign-ups.
According to CNBC, enrollment jumped by at least 2 percent over 2016. In contrast, Healthcare.gov enrollment was down 4 percent in the 39 states that utilize the federally-run marketplace. Kaiser Family Foundation senior vice president Larry Levitt said some of the difference can be explained by the Trump administration’s move to pull TV ads for the federal marketplace in the final week of open enrollment.
"While the Trump administration pulled outreach ads as the open-enrollment period ended, state marketplaces were continuing to market to potential new enrollees," Levitt told CNBC. "With so much churn in the insurance market as people's circumstances change, constant outreach is necessary to keep enrollment up."
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John joined TriMed in 2016, focusing on healthcare policy and regulation. After graduating from Columbia College Chicago, he worked at FM News Chicago and Rivet News Radio, and worked on the state government and politics beat for the Illinois Radio Network. Outside of work, you may find him adding to his never-ending graphic novel collection.