Author Topic: Huff Post....Obamacare Enrollments Surpass 1 Million  (Read 771 times)

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Offline mystery-ak

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Huff Post....Obamacare Enrollments Surpass 1 Million
« on: December 11, 2013, 02:55:40 pm »
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/11/obamacare-enrollment_n_4421797.html?ncid=txtlnkushpmg00000037&ir=Politics

Obamacare Enrollments Surpass 1 Million
Posted: 12/11/2013 9:00 am EST  |  Updated: 12/11/2013 9:03 am EST

WASHINGTON -- More than two months after Obamacare's ugly debut, the number of Americans using the system is starting to grow: Nearly 1.2 million people are on track to have health coverage in place next year from the law's health insurance exchanges, the Department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday.

From Oct. 1 through Nov. 30, almost 365,000 people enrolled into private health insurance via the federal and state marketplaces and more than 803,000 were deemed eligible for Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program, according to the department.

The federally run exchanges in more than 30 states accounted for 137,000 of the enrollments in private coverage, and the remaining states signed up 227,000. About 1.9 million more people had been determined eligible for coverage through the marketplaces, but hadn't yet chosen a health plan. The new data don't include an apparent flurry of enrollments in the early days of December.

HealthCare.gov, the federal portal to health coverage in more than 30 states, still has problems, but appears to doing what it's supposed to do: enabling consumers to do shop and sign up for health benefits for next year.

Eric Rawlings, 42, of Decatur, Ga., breezed through HealthCare.gov in about 10 minutes to enroll in a private health plan for himself and his infant daughter in late November, he told The Huffington Post.

"Everybody talks about how horrible this website is and all the glitches and stuff, but I tell you, it was the best experience I ever had shopping for insurance," said Rawlings, who owns an architectural design firm. Rawlings chose the highest level of coverage, a Platinum plan that includes dental benefits, for $550 a month, or about $50 more than he pays for a medical-only policy for just himself this year. He earns too much to qualify for tax credits to reduce his premiums.

Rawlings has been buying his own health insurance since starting his own business more than a decade ago and didn't miss having to disclose his medical history and wait weeks for an approval -- or rejection. Nor did he yearn for paying higher rates because of a pre-existing condition he has, he said. "I have just been waiting for the Affordable Care Act to kick in," he said.

Despite a gradual accumulation of stories like this, President Barack Obama has a long way to go to achieve the targeted 7 million private health insurance and 9 million Medicaid sign-ups anticipated for the first year of the program. The open enrollment period for 2014 health benefits runs until March 31. The Obama administration originally sought to enroll 800,000 people by the end of November.

"We have every reason to believe that interest will continue to grow and enrollment numbers will continue to rise," Michael Hash, the director of the Office of Health Reform at the Department of Health and Human Services, said during a conference call with reporters Tuesday. "We think we're on track and we will reach the total that we thought." The bulk of those sign-ups will come near the end of the six-month enrollment period, he said.

Significant challenges remain if that prediction is to come true. HealthCare.gov and exchange websites in states like Oregon and Maryland continue to suffer performance issues, despite improvements. Health insurance companies and states report receiving incomplete, inaccurate or non-existent enrollment files about would-be enrollees. And consumers, including those whose current policies were canceled because they don't meet Affordable Care Act standards, have less than two weeks left to sign up for coverage that will be in place on Jan. 1.

Still, Obamacare enrollment is quickening nationwide as the Dec. 23 deadline approaches for those who want coverage in place on Jan. 1. After weeks of feverish efforts to repair the broken federal website, the Obama administration declared Dec. 1 that it would be functional for the "vast majority" of users. In the first three days of this month, 56,000 individuals reportedly signed up via the federal system.

"We invite those Americans whose experience with HealthCare.gov have been frustrating to them so far to come back and try again. The HealthCare.gov website is night and day from where it was on Oct. 1," Hash said.

In contrast to November and December, national enrollment into private insurance in October was just 106,000 -- only 27,000 of which came from the federal system -- and 396,000 were determined eligible for Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program. The report issued Wednesday includes enrollments for both October and November and reflects a nearly fourfold increase in enrollments via the federal exchanges in the second month compared with the first.



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Offline Chieftain

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Re: Huff Post....Obamacare Enrollments Surpass 1 Million
« Reply #1 on: December 11, 2013, 03:40:18 pm »
yah...almost 900,000 people so far dumped onto the State Medicaid rolls.  This is a growing budget disaster for the States.

rangerrebew

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Re: Huff Post....Obamacare Enrollments Surpass 1 Million
« Reply #2 on: December 11, 2013, 03:54:30 pm »
Nearly 1.2 million people are on track to have health coverage

 almost 365,000 people enrolled into private health insurance

 About 1.9 million more people had been determined eligible.


Despite a gradual accumulation of stories like this,

"We have every reason to believe

Significant challenges remain if that prediction is to come true. HealthCare.gov and exchange websites in states like Oregon and Maryland continue to suffer performance issues, despite improvements. Health insurance companies and states report receiving incomplete, inaccurate or non-existent enrollment files about would-be enrollees. And consumers, including those whose current policies were canceled because they don't meet Affordable Care Act standards, have less than two weeks left to sign up for coverage that will be in place on Jan. 1.

 it would be functional for the "vast majority" of users.

"We invite those Americans whose experience with HealthCare.gov have been frustrating to them so far to come back and try again. The HealthCare.gov website is night and day from where it was on Oct. 1," Hash said.



I'm convinced everything is great by this article. :whistle:

Offline Relic

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Re: Huff Post....Obamacare Enrollments Surpass 1 Million
« Reply #3 on: December 11, 2013, 04:00:00 pm »
I told you, by summer, Obamacare will be the comeback kid. It will amaze all who behold it, and signify the goodness of the Democrat party. Any lingering problems will be ignored, and if too glaring will be blamed on the capitalist insurance companies or the Republican obstructionists.

The electorate will be told over and over how wonderful this all is for them, and how voting Republican would be against their own best interests.

It might work.