Dive Brief:
- The Obama administration has announced that more than 1.1 million people have enrolled in health plans through the federal health exchange between October 1 and December 24.
- According to a blog post by CMS administrator Marilyn Tavenner, more than 975,000 enrolled through the federal exchange site HealthCare.gov during December alone; last week the site saw a surge of more than 850,000 visits after the administration offered a one day extension for people to sign up for coverage effective January 1.
- HHS has reported that nearly 265,000 individuals have selected health plans through the PPACA marketplaces by the end of November, including 227,478 20 plan to state-based health exchanges and 137,204 individuals who chose plans on the federal exchange.
Dive Insight:
While the HealthCare.gov situation has clearly improved dramatically, enrollment will have to climb substantially over the next few months to do anything like that the uninsured population currently in existence in the US. While estimates vary, the number of uninsured in the US has been pegged at 40 million or more, a number which will scarcely be tamed by sign-ups at even 1 million a month. It's time someone stop and look at what PPACA is not going to be able to do; ensuring most of the uninsured does not seem possible.