3 On Your Side: 4 Million Sign Up For Health Insurance, Penalty Rise In 2015
By Jim Donovan
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- More than 4 million people have signed up so far for health insurance as part of open enrollment under the Affordable Care Act for 2015. According to a report released today about half of those enrolling are returning customers, suggesting there are about 2 million Americans new to the program. 3 On Your Side Consumer Reporter Jim Donovan takes a look at the numbers in our region.
According to a report released by the Department of Health and Human services, during the first month of open enrollment 180,046 Pennsylvanians, 105,306 New Jersey residents and 8,956 people in Delaware purchased insurance coverage through the health insurance Marketplace. Which means they'll be covered by insurance beginning January 1st, in advance of the February 15th enrollment deadline.
Consumers who enrolled last year and don't wish to change their coverage will be automatically re-enrolled. Although Nancy O'Connor, Regional Administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services says they still may want to shop around. According to O'Connor, "We've seen about a 25 percent increase in the number of plan offerings, so that's why it's so important that whether you're new to the Marketplace or whether you're re-enrolling because you already have a Marketplace plan, you want to check out the options that are available."
The good news is that the process won't be as time consuming as the when they first applied last year. O'Connor says, "For people coming back to the Marketplace to re-enroll, about 90 percent of the application is pre-populated, so they don't have to complete the whole application all over again."
Federal law requires that all Americans have health insurance coverage. If you don't have proof of coverage you'll be hit with a penalty. In 2015 that penalty increases to $325 per person or 2 percent of your annual household income, whichever is greater.
Here is a link to a calculator that can help you determine the penalty impact if you fail to obtain health insurance coverage: http://taxpolicycenter.org/taxfacts/acacalculator.cfm