Covered California Releases First 2019 Enrollment Figures, Enrollment Slightly Down Compared to Last Year

On Tuesday, Covered California announced that 90,500 new consumers signed up for 2019 coverage as of November 30. These figures represent more than an 11 percent drop in enrollment compared to this time last year when there were roughly 102,000 new consumers signed up for coverage. The decrease in Affordable Care Act (ACA) enrollment at this time is similar to that seen across the country. Covered California Executive Director Peter Lee notes that it is too early to draw conclusions at this time but indicates the removal of the federal individual insurance coverage mandate penalty and the exchange’s decision to delay marketing until after November’s election could explain the reason for the slower enrollment pace. Still, enrollment is slightly ahead of figures from 2016 when Covered California marketing was delayed until after the November 2016 election. Approximately 1.2 million California enrollees renewed their coverage for 2019, similar to last year’s figures.

Enrollment through the federal government’s HealthCare.gov exchange runs for six weeks through December 15, while Covered California’s window runs for three months through January 15. The federal government last month indicated enrollment through its marketplace was down by 9.2 percent on a daily basis. The full Covered California announcement is available here.