The first numbers are out for this year's ACA marketplace open enrollment season, which kicked off on November 1. During the first two days, 177,082 people enrolled in a health plan through HealthCare.gov–a significant decrease from last year's 371,676.
There are several factors at play, however–for one, last year's initial "week" of signups lasted three days instead of two. In addition, several enrollees were stymied by technical glitches resulting in error messages, according the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The error has since been fixed, CMS has said.
It will be interesting to see how the final totals shake out when the enrollment window ends on December 15 (for the 38 states participating in the federal exchange). The loss of the individual mandate and the legal challenges seeking to invalidate the ACA could lead many to skip the exchanges this year.
Still, ACA premiums decreased, on average, 4 percent for 2020 plans, potentially making coverage more affordable and appealing for some individuals.
Take a look at the breakdown of numbers coming out of the first "week" of ACA signups for 2020:
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Emily Payne
Emily Payne is director, content analytics for ALM's Business & Finance Markets and former managing editor for BenefitsPRO. A Wisconsin native, she has spent the past decade writing and editing for various athletic and fitness publications. She holds an English degree and Business certificate from the University of Wisconsin.
