California: 11,357 *NEW* QHP Enrollees in first 4 days of #OE2

(sigh) OK, I wasn't gonna post any more updates today but this is kind of a big one..CoveredCA:

Obamacare: @CoveredCA says 11,357 enrolled in health plans in 4 days of open enrollment Nov 15-18 #ACA #OE2

— Chad Terhune (@chadterhune) November 20, 2014

For comparison...

Obamacare enrollment: @CoveredCA signed up 11,357 in first 4 days, took 15 days to hit that in Oct 2013 #ACA #OE2

— Chad Terhune (@chadterhune) November 20, 2014

It's also important to remember that unlike HC.gov, CoveredCA was (for the most part, anyway) fully operational from the beginning last year, which makes this a reasonable apples-to-apples comparison.

In addition, Terhune clarifies:

Obamacare year 2: @CoveredCA says 11,357 NEW sign-ups first 4 days Nov 15-18. No # yet on renewals #ACA

— Chad Terhune (@chadterhune) November 20, 2014

Holy smokes. Assuming the "NEW" really means "NOT including the 1.1 - 1.2 million Californians who are currently enrolled in exchange-based QHPs (as opposed to Medicaid, CHIP or dental policies) through CoveredCA as of now" (I'm trusting no one today), that's fantastic.

UPDATE: Terhune clarifies that yes, the 11.3K number refers to QHPs specficially.

So, in short, California is starting 2015 #OE2 out by enrolling newly added people nearly 4x faster than last year. Not bad at all!

From the official press release:

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Covered California and the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) announced that 69,245 consumers submitted applications for health coverage, including Medi-Cal, during the first four days of the 2015 open-enrollment period.

“We had a strong start when we opened Saturday for Covered California, and we are continuing to see tremendous interest from people seeking security for themselves and their families in both Covered California plans and Medi-Cal coverage,” Covered California Executive Director Peter V. Lee said. “There still is a lot of work to do, though, and we are committed to making sure every Californian gets the health care coverage they want and deserve.”

As of Tuesday, Nov. 18, about 35,877 consumers were determined eligible for coverage through Covered California, and 11,357 picked a plan. By comparison, in October 2013 it took 15 days to reach 10,972 plan selections.

About 33,368 applicants were deemed to be likely eligible for Medi-Cal from Nov. 15 to Nov. 18. So far in 2014, Medi-Cal has enrolled more than 2.2 million Californians.