ACA sign-ups top 4 million as first deadline approaches

(Bloomberg) – More than 4 million people picked Affordable Care Act plans in the 39 states that use the federal HealthCare.gov marketplace in the first six weeks of the 2017 sign-up period, the U.S. said Wednesday.

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The figure includes 1.1 million new customers and 2.9 million renewals through Dec. 10, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said in a statement. Sign-ups typically accelerate as the Dec. 15 deadline for Jan. 1 coverage approaches, and the government said more than 700,000 signed up on Dec. 12 and 13, without providing details.

Obama administration officials have been pushing hard to get individuals to sign up for Affordable Care Act health plans in the wake of Republican Donald Trump’s presidential election victory. Sign-ups are a key measure of the health of the law’s individual markets, and Trump has said he wants to repeal and replace ACA.

Wednesday’s report doesn’t include sign-ups in states that run their own exchanges, such as California and New York. The Covered California marketplace said yesterday that more than 1.2 million people have renewed their health plans in the state, while 139,000 new people enrolled.

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