Since Open Enrollment began on Nov. 15, nearly 6.6 million consumers selected a health insurance plan or were automatically re-enrolled in the Federally Facilitated Marketplace (FFM), according to a post on the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) blog.
The Week 7 snapshot (as HHS calls it) includes the New Year’s holiday; consumers continued to shop and select the plan that best meets their financial or health needs.
“Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, nearly 6.6 million Americans have access to quality, affordable health coverage for 2015 through the Federally Facilitated Health Insurance Marketplace. As we turn to the New Year, our focus is on helping every individual who is interested in quality, affordable health insurance to understand their options and to get covered,” HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell said. “For coverage starting on February 1, it is important for people to sign-up now ahead of the Jan. 15 deadline.”
HHS produces more detailed reports that look at plan selection across the Federally Facilitated Marketplace and State-Based Marketplaces on a monthly basis. The first Open Enrollment monthly report was released on Dec. 30. Weekly snapshots do not include the consumers who visited, called, shopped or selected a plan through a State-Based Marketplace.
The Open Enrollment snapshots for the Federally Facilitated Marketplace provide point-in-time estimates for weekly data. These are preliminary numbers and could fluctuate based on consumers changing or canceling plans or having a change in status such as new job or marriage. The snapshots also include totals from the beginning of the 2015 Open Enrollment period, which started Nov. 15, 2014. Note that data revisions may mean that the weekly totals do not always equate to the cumulative numbers.
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