Healthcare.gov sign-up deadline pushed back
HHS pushed back the deadline for customers to buy coverage on the Affordable Care Act (ACA)'s federally run insurance exchange, giving buyers until Dec. 19 to pick a health plan that will go into effect in the new year.
"Nearly a million consumers have left their contact information to hold their place in line," Healthcare.gov CEO Kevin Counihan said in a statement released just hours before the original deadline of 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 15. "Our goal is to provide affordable coverage to everyone seeking it before the deadline, and these two additional business days will give consumers an opportunity to come back and complete their enrollment for January 1 coverage.”
Similar to previous years of open enrollment, HHS reported a late surge in sign-ups. On Dec. 12 and 13 alone, 700,000 people picked a plan as overall enrollment was slightly ahead of 2015.
The extension applies to customers in states which rely on the federal Healthcare.gov exchange. Other state-based exchanges had already given enrollees extra time: California, Connecticut and New York gave customers until Dec. 17, while Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Washington pushed their deadline to Dec. 23.
Open enrollment runs until Jan. 31. Plans selected after the deadlines will have coverage going into effect in February or March instead of Jan. 1.
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.