Colorado: 156K QHPs thru 12/15, up 4.8% year over year!

Apparently all of the state-based exchanges decided to release their 12/15 numbers at once this afternoon...(via email, no web link yet):

Connect for Health Colorado® Reports 5% Increase in Healthcare Plan Selections for 2019; Open Enrollment Continues Four Weeks

DENVER -- More than 156,000 Coloradans selected healthcare coverage for 2019 through the state health insurance Marketplace through December 15, 2018, a rate 5 percent ahead of signups one year ago, according to new data released today by Connect for Health Colorado®.

“I am happy with the pace of sign-ups for health insurance plans that take effect January 1,” said Connect for Health Colorado CEO Kevin Patterson.  “But we are still enrolling Coloradans who buy their own health insurance and will continue through January 15. For anyone who does not yet have coverage in place, it’s time to go to our site and pick your coverage for next year. In four weeks, the door closes for buying your 2019 health plan.” 

Coloradans have selected 156,101 medical insurance plans through the December 15 deadline. The total was 149,006 for the comparable period in 2017. Seventeen percent of the medical plan selections are by customers who are new to Connect for Health Colorado and 83 percent are renewing customers.

Connect for Health Colorado opened for business November 1 with rate increases lower than the state has seen in years, a streamlined application process that will save Coloradans time obtaining financial assistance and all seven health insurance companies returning to the individual market in 2019.

While many states have concluded their Open Enrollment periods, Open Enrollment in Colorado runs to January 15, 2019, for insurance that will take effect February 1, 2019.

“As a state-based health insurance marketplace, we are able to adjust our operations to best meet the needs of the residents of our state,” Patterson said. “This year, that has meant introducing a streamlined process for obtaining financial help, improving our online tool for choosing a health plan and extending the enrollment period beyond the holidays.”