A State-by-State Look at Exchanges As Obamacare Deadline Looms

Some states have extended their deadlines, but report solid enrollment outcomes. 

Applicants fill out paperwork during a health care enrollment fair at the Bay Area Rescue Mission on March 31, 2014 in Richmond, Calif. Just over 177,000 people applied for health care in California last year.

As the Dec. 15 deadline for signing up for health insurance under Obamacare closes, states are reporting an increase in their enrollment numbers, and some have decided to give consumers more time to pick a health plan. Although Americans have until Feb. 15 to enroll without paying a tax penalty, any applications completed in most states after 3 a.m. – or midnight Pacific time Dec. 15 – will not kick in Jan. 1, 2015, but will instead activated during the following month.
“For the uninsured – many of whom have gone for years without coverage – that means this is the last opportunity to sign up in time to start the new year with the peace of mind that comes with health insurance,” says Anne Filipic, president of Enroll America, a non-profit grassroots organization that helps inform and enroll Americans in health plans.
Under the Affordable Care Act, every American must purchase health insurance or pay a tax penalty. Most Americans have coverage through employers, while seniors are covered by Medicare and low-income residents are covered by Medicaid. Those who fall into the gap – such as small-business owners or self-employed Americans – can buy private, government-subsidized health insurance through online marketplaces or exchanges.
Healthcare.gov isn't the site every American can use – there are separate websites for the District of Columbia and 13 states. Open enrollment, the three-month period during which people can sign up for insurance, began Nov. 15 and will last until Feb. 15. There are some variations in deadlines by state. New York, for instance, has extended its deadline to Dec. 20. Other states announced extensions late Monday.
With some exceptions, most people who enrolled in the marketplaces last year will be automatically re-enrolled in coverage by Monday, and those who do not make changes to their old plan likely will see increases in their premium costs. About 70 percent of those who take the time to shop again on the marketplaces could get a cheaper deal, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

[READ: Obamacare Premiums Will Rise, But Officials Optimistic About Site Fixes]
For 37 states, Healthcare.gov is the go-to website for low- and middle-income Americans to enroll in health insurance. The site, currently in its second year, is now experiencing little if any of the glitches that marked its 2013 debut. Nearly 1.4 million Americans have signed up for new insurance or renewed it through Healthcare.gov, meaning they all will have coverage beginning in the new year. Health and government officials have said they are pleased with this year’s enrollment effort.
“Compared to the rough start last year, the experience this year is like night and day,” Filipic says. “The website is more stable, and thanks to a streamlined application, many consumers are able to complete the process with far fewer clicks than during the first open enrollment period.”
The Department of Health and Human Services projects that as many as 9.9 million will enroll in the marketplace this year, a lower estimate than the Congressional Budget Office had projected. Larry Levitt, a senior vice president at the Kaiser Family Foundation, tweeted Monday that if history repeats itself, a flooding in enrollment would occur Monday, but that an even bigger one was likely during the first couple of weeks of February.
The federal health agency did not release individual state enrollment numbers, and will not do so until next year, but U.S. News surveyed all 13 individual states and the District of Columbia exchanges to view the progress of each.
California: More than 290,000 new consumers submitted applications and were determined eligible for private health insurance or Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program, in the early weeks of open enrollment, Covered California and the California Department of Health Care Services announced Wednesday. Last year’s enrollment and applications after a month totaled just over 177,000.
The site has suffered some glitches, including one Friday that accidentally diverted some consumers to Medi-Cal who qualified for private plans. The agency said it was aware of the problem and was making sure that those who enrolled on time would still be covered, reported UT San Diego.
Colorado: The state's website, Connect for Health Colorado, announced Thursday that 24,811 individuals and families have signed up for private health insurance coverage. About one-third are customers new to the marketplace and the rest are customers re-enrolling in coverage for 2015. In addition, 3,642 Coloradans have enrolled in dental insurance.
The Denver Post reported in early December that some customers were being booted from the site, and agents from the marketplace said they were aware of the issue and working to fix it.
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