According to a report released today by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 169,704 people in Wisconsin have selected plans through the Health Insurance Marketplace as of Jan. 9. That is up from 92,398 who enrolled by Dec. 15 for coverage beginning Jan. 1.
For coverage beginning Feb. 1, people must apply for coverage by Thursday. The final deadline to sign up for 2015 coverage is Feb. 15. If people miss that deadline, they will likely have to wait to sign up for coverage until the next open enrollment season, with coverage starting in 2016.
Since open enrollment began on Nov. 15, nearly 6.8 million consumers nationwide have selected a plan or were automatically re-enrolled in the Federally Facilitated Marketplace.
According to the HHS, 90 percent of Wisconsin residents who selected 2015 plans through HealthCare.gov in the first month of open enrollment received financial assistance to lower their premiums. Nationally, eight out of 10 people can find coverage for $100 or less a month with tax credits through the Marketplace.
The HHS also states that more health plan choices are available this year. For instance, more than 90 percent of consumers will be able to choose from three or more issuers—up from 74 percent in 2014, meaning that consumers can choose from an average of 40 health plans in their county for 2015 coverage—up from 30 in 2014.
For more information or to enroll, visit www.healthcare.gov/marketplace.
