Federal Health Market Surpasses 1 Million Signups
Federal Health Market Surpasses 1 Million Signups
By AP/Josh Lederman Dec. 29, 2013
(HONOLULU) A December surge propelled health care sign-ups through the governments rehabilitated website past the 1 million mark, the Obama administration said Sunday, reflecting new signs of life for the problem-plagued federal insurance exchange.
Of the more than 1.1 million people now enrolled, nearly 1 million signed up in December, with the majority coming in the week before a pre-Christmas deadline for coverage to start in January. Compare that to a paltry 27,000 in October the websites first, error-prone month or 137,000 in November.
The figures tell only part of the story. The administration has yet to provide a December update on the 14 states running their own exchanges. While California, New York, Washington, Kentucky and Connecticut have performed well, others are still struggling.
Still, the end-of-year surge suggests that with HealthCare.Gov now functioning better, the federal market may be starting to pull its weight. The windfall comes at a critical moment for Obamas sweeping health care law, which becomes real for many Americans on Jan. 1 when coverage through the exchanges and key patient protections kick in.
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