Obamacare Signups Lag Compared to Year Ago in Early Check-In

(Bloomberg) -- More than 800,000 people selected 2019 Obamacare health plans during the second week of open enrollment, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said Wednesday. That brings the total number of signups in the first 10 days of November to about 1.2 million.

Key Insights

• The numbers are lower than during a similar period a year ago, but higher than the year before that. Open enrollment lasts until Dec. 15.
• There are reasons to think signups will decline this year compared with 2018: The Trump administration has cut funding for advertising and outreach. A mandate that people have coverage or pay a fine has been eliminated. And the administration has promoted cheaper, less comprehensive plans outside of the Affordable Care Act.
• But it’s still too early to know for sure: There’s typically a surge of people who come in at the end of the six-week enrollment period. Health care got lots of attention in the midterm elections, but it may not have translated into enrollments.

Know More

Read the full U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services statement on the week two numbers here.

To contact the reporter on this story: John Tozzi in New York at jtozzi2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Drew Armstrong at darmstrong17@bloomberg.net, Timothy Annett

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