Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Status Check: Obamacare Enrollment Slows In Week 4 Of Sign-Up Season
Reuters: Sign-Up Pace Much Slower In Week 4 Of 2018 Obamacare Enrollment
The pace of people signing up for individual insurance under Obamacare slowed significantly during the fourth week of 2018 enrollment, as nearly 37 percent fewer people signed up for the healthcare plans than in the previous week, a U.S. government agency reported on Wednesday. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said that 504,181 people signed up for 2018 Obamacare individual insurance in the 39 states that use the federal government website HealthCare.gov for the week ended Nov. 25, down from 798,829 people in the previous week. New consumer sign-ups fell to 152,243 from 220,323 in the previous week. (11/29)
The Hill: ObamaCare Enrollment Slows In Fourth Week
Nearly 2.8 million people signed up for ObamaCare plans during the first 25 days of open enrollment, but the rate of sign-ups has slowed, the Trump administration announced. ... While more people are signing up for ObamaCare in the initial weeks, the final numbers could fall short of previous years because the enrollment period ends Dec. 15, meaning people only have about half as much time to sign up as last year. (Weixel, 11/29)
Columbus Dispatch: About 60,000 Ohioans Have Signed Up For 'Obamacare'
Nearly 2.8 million people have signed up for health insurance through Affordable Care Act since enrollment opened Nov. 1, including more than 60,000 in Ohio, but the the rate of sign-ups continues to slow. ... Last year, about 12.2 million nationwide signed up for health care on HealthCare.gov including about 240,000 in Ohio. (Candisky, 11/29)
Georgia Health News: Holiday Week Not A Bustling Time For Insurance Exchanges
Enrollment on the health insurance exchanges appeared to slow during Thanksgiving week in Georgia and nationally, federal figures show. After 119,968 Georgians enrolled for 2018 coverage in the first three weeks of sign-ups, just 26,931 picked a health plan last week. (Miller, 11/29)
Chicago Sun Times: Over 95,000 In Illinois Sign Up For Obamacare Plans
Although some would agree the website is confusing, that hasn’t stopped over 95,000 Illinois residents from enrolling in an Obamacare health insurance plan this year according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. That’s a roughly 40 percent increase from 2016. By this point in time last year, a little over 68,000 people had signed up. (Hinton, 11/29)
St. Louis Public Radio: Shortened Enrollment Period For Affordable Care Act Gets A Healthy Start In Missouri
Once again, people who don’t get health insurance through their job are logging into online market places set up by the Affordable Care Act to buy it on their own. This year, the enrollment season is shorter — six weeks — but business is brisk. In the first four weeks of this year’s enrollment season, 78,676 Missourians enrolled in a plan, according to numbers released Wednesday by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. That’s about 17,000 more people than were signed up during the same period last year. (Bouscaren, 11/29)
