Texas on track to surpass 2014 enrollment numbers

Nearly a third of a million Texans have signed up for health care coverage through the Affordable Care Act’s federal exchange, putting the state on pace to overtake where it was at last year’s deadline to ensure coverage on Jan. 1, U.S. Health and Human Services officials said Wednesday.

By week five of open enrollment, 317,094 people in the state had chosen plans on the exchange. That number has heartened officials who say there is still nearly a week to go before the Dec. 15 deadline and enrollment typically surges in the final days.

“Texas is already about 80 percent of the way there,” Benjamin Wakana, HHS press secretary, said of the roughly 370,000 who had signed up by Dec. 15 last year.

Nationally, more than 2.8 million had signed up as of Dec. 5, with a million new enrollees just last week, said Andy Slavitt, acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, during a phone-in news briefing.

“Each day is busier than the day before,” he said.

Making comparisons between the years can be tricky as the enrollment periods are slightly different this year. The exchange opened Nov. 1 this year, two weeks earlier, giving consumers more time to pick a plan. But it also means the surge before deadline comes two weeks later, which officials say throws off direct comparisons.

The penalty for skipping insurance will rise to at least $695 for an individual and up to $2,085 for a family in 2016.

About three-quarters of Texas enrollees will be able to find a plan for $75 per month or less with subsidies, according to HHS. But many people may have to change existing plans as insurance offerings have changed this year.

The stakes remain high in Texas as it continues to lead the nation in both in the number and the rate of uninsured.

Enrollment will continue through Jan. 31.

jenny.deam@chron.com

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