4.3M people sign up for healthcare in final week of ACA enrollment

More than 4.3 million people signed up for healthcare coverage on the ACA exchanges during the final week of the 2019 Open Enrollment Period, outpacing last year's enrollment of 4.1 million signups during the final week of open enrollment last year.

Overall, the preliminary enrollment numbers remained relatively steady. So far, 8.5 million people signed up for coverage, down about 3.4% compared to 8.8 million people the same time last year.

The final week's sharp increase is particularly notable in light of a ruling by a Texas judge striking down the ACA the day before the end of enrollment—which sparked worries of lower-than-expected signups among last-minute enrollees. Enrollment ended at midnight Eastern time on Dec. 15, but California extended its enrollment period due to concern about consumer confusion caused by the timing of the ruling.

Several other states, including Massachusetts, New York, Colorado and Rhode Island, have longer open enrollment periods that stretch into January.

RELATED: Week 1 ACA exchange enrollment sluggish, but analysts aren’t worried

It will likely be a few months before the final 2019 open enrollment figures are available. The final ACA exchange enrollment totals for 2018 open enrollment reached 11.8 million, down 3.7% from the previous year.

In a statement, CMS Administrator Seema Verma posited the numbers might be softer this year because of stronger economic indicators such as employment growth.

“With the lowest unemployment rate in 50 years, it’s possible that more Americans have employer-based coverage, and don’t need exchange plans," Verma said in a statement regarding the drop.

RELATED: ACA exchange enrollment totals 11.8M in 2018, down 3.7% from last year

She also argued that lower spending on outreach and the introduction of short-term plans did not impact enrollment. 

CMS also pointed to the expansion of Medicaid in states like Virginia, which accounted for about 100,000 exchange enrollees becoming eligible for expanded Medicaid.

Open enrollment for 2019 started off sluggish, with just over 370,000 people signed up for plans on Healthcare.gov during the first week of open enrollment, which began on Nov. 1. In comparison, 601,462 that enrolled during the first week the prior year.

Enrollment appeared to gain steam over time, but signups appeared weaker than prior years.