As the first enrollment deadline for Affordable Care Act drew to a close last Monday, here are three major takeaways from last-minute sign-ups, according to online publisher ProQuest Information and Learning Company.
1. Millions of late shoppers rushed to HealthCare.gov Monday to beat the midnight deadline
Last Monday, nearly 5 million people visited the at-times glitchy online marketplace, hoping to make the enrollment deadline. Earlier that morning, HealthCare.gov experienced an outage due to late-night tech work. At midnight, more than 100,000 people were still trying to sign up, ProQuest notes.
Three million lower-income individuals enrolled for reform coverage as of the end of February, federal health officials announced Friday. Since Oct. 1, more than 10 million people have signed up for both private and public coverage.
2. Between 80 percent and 90 percent of exchange premiums paid
This number comes from insurance companies, not government sources, according to U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. She implied the number could even be higher, and said "lots of companies have different timetables for when their new customers have to send their first payment," she explained in an interview with Oklahoma City station KWTV-TV.
3. Support for ACA remains mixed
Polls show 75 percent of people support the reform provision to keep kids on their parents' health insurance until the age of 26, according to ProQuest. Overall, 46 percent oppose the law, while 38 percent favor it.
Despite these stats, a Pew Research Center poll found opponents of the healthcare law would rather see elected officials try to make it work rather than see the law fail. A majority of ACA opponents, who represent 30 percent of the overall public, want to see the law work, while 19 percent want to see the ACA fail.
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