Rhode Island: 91% of total QHPs PAID as of 4/30

"But, but...how many have PAID???" in Rhode Island?

Christine Ferguson, executive director of HealthSource RI, said 91% of the 27,968 individuals who signed up for private plans during the open enrollment period from Oct. 1 to March 31 paid their first premiums by the April 23 deadline. Analysts have pointed to that percentage as a key test of whether the enrollment figures were as strong as they looked.

“My takeaway of that 91% is that we have work to do to keep them, but that’s a high conversion rate, and it’s a testament to the work that the staff’s done to really work with people,” Ferguson told WPRI.com.

“I think it’s a reflection of the work that’s been done in the marketplace, the care that we took in the kinds of plans we offered and the range, and I think it is a reflection of the system working reasonably well,” she said. “I think for us the real issue – and I think the thing that people have not paid enough attention to nationally – is retention.”

A total of 25,879 individuals had signed up for a private plan through HealthSource RI and paid their first premiums as of April 30, the agency said. In addition, more than 70,000 people have now used the marketplace to sign up for Medicaid, the government insurance plan for low-income Americans, far more than were expected to do so.

So, 91% of those enrolled through 3/31 (25,450 out of 27,968) were paid up as of 4/23 (that is, 23 days later)

Interestingly, and even better, an identical 91% of those enrolled through 4/30 (25,879 out of 28,485) were paid up as of 4/30 (suggesting that it'll be even higher by May 23rd).

All of a sudden, my "93% paid or will pay" rule of thumb seems downright--I have to say it--CONSERVATIVE, doesn't it?