Numbers released today by the federal government show that 5,303 people have signed up for Obamacare in Wisconsin between the beginning of open enrollment on Oct. 1 and the end of November.
A mere 877 people in Wisconsin had signed up in the first month as major technical problems with Healthcare.gov made enrollment extremely difficult.
In the second month of open enrollment, 4,426 people in Wisconsin signed up for coverage.
The Associated Press reported Tuesday that around 7,200 people in Wisconsin have purchased health insurance through healthcare.gov.
The Obama administration and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had set a goal of Nov. 30 as a day where Healthcare.gov would work for the “vast majority” of users.
Today, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said, “Evidence of the technical improvements can be seen in the enrollment numbers.”
The numbers on enrollment from Oct. 1 through Nov. 30 released today by the HHS show that Wisconsin is 16th nationwide in the percentage of the state’s population that is now signed up for Obamacare. The nine states with the highest percentage all have state-based marketplaces, which includes high population states like New York and California, but also includes states with smaller populations like Vermont, Kentucky and Rhode Island.
However, there are now a higher percentage of people signed up in Wisconsin, which has a federally-facilitated marketplace, than in Minnesota, which has a state-based marketplace. 4,478 are enrolled through Minnesota’s state-run marketplace, MNSure.
In addition to the higher number of people who signed up for coverage in Wisconsin in November, the number of completed applications has more than doubled, going from 19,098 at the end of October to 47,173 at the end of November.
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) estimated that around 700,000 Wisconsin residents in total are expected to sign up for coverage through the new federally-run marketplace, including more than 168,000 in Milwaukee County.
Nationally, 364,682 signed up for Obamacare through private health insurance – 227,478 in the 14 state-based marketplaces and 137, 204 in federally-facilitated marketplaces.
803,077 individuals have been determined eligible for Medicaid or CHIP by the marketplaces nationwide. 18,768 have been determined eligible in Wisconsin.
