Two things are true as of today: 2026 ACA Open Enrollment has ended...and 2026 ACA Open Enrollment is still going on (in some states).
The official Open Enrollment Period is over in 42 states...but residents of the other 8 (plus DC) still have time to enroll for coverage starting February 1st.
9/29/25: Welcome Paul Krugman subscribers! I greatly appreciate the shoutout by him but should add the following clarification:
Regarding the chart below which he reposted comparing the original ACA subsidy scale to the current version: You probably think that if the enhanced subsidies expire it will revert back to the original version, which would be bad enough. In fact, however, the Trump Regime has also made THAT version even worse, like so:
Earlier today the New Jersey Dept. of Banking & Insurance put out a press release urging NJ residents to enroll in ACA coverage ahead of the final enrollment deadline on Saturday, January 31st.
The release also included some enrollment stats (including some pretty depressing ones), as well as a link to Get Covered NJ's Week 9 enrollment report:
As of January 2, 2026, a total of 493,727 residents are signed up for 2026 health coverage with Get Covered New Jersey, including 50,108 new consumers and 203,836 consumers who actively selected a plan. During the 2025 plan year, a total of 481,151 residents were signed up for 2025 health coverage with Get Covered New Jersey, including 70,507 new consumers as of January 2, 2025. The number of new consumers enrolling in coverage has decreased by nearly 30% in plan year 2026.
TRENTON — As the January 31 final deadline for Open Enrollment approaches, New Jersey residents still in need of health insurance are encouraged to explore plan options for 2026 through Get Covered New Jersey, the State’s Official Health Insurance Marketplace, New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance Acting Commissioner Susan Ochs said today, reminding residents that financial help and community-based enrollment assistance remains available.
Open Enrollment is the only time of year residents can enroll in a plan, unless they have a major life event, such as marriage, pregnancy, or a move that qualifies them for a Special Enrollment Period.
Marketplace 2026 Open Enrollment Period (OEP) Report: National Snapshot
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reports that 23.0 million consumers have signed up for 2026 individual market health insurance coverage through the Marketplaces since the start of the 2026 Marketplace Open Enrollment Period (OEP) on November 1, 2025.
This includes 15.8 million Marketplace plan selections in the 30 states using the HealthCare.gov platform for the 2026 plan year and 7.2 million plan selections in the 20 states and the District of Columbia with state-based Exchanges (SBEs) that are using their own eligibility and enrollment platforms.[1]
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, made his final pitch to Senate Democrats on a plan to revive expired health care subsidies on Wednesday, according to a copy of the legislation obtained by Semafor.
The Ohio Republican is pitching a one-year extension of the enhanced premium tax credits that expired at the end of last year with an option to use Health Savings Accounts after 2026. it would also bar “individuals not lawfully present” in the US from receiving benefits under the bill.
...The proposal also includes a minimum $5 monthly payment on subsidized plans; extends open enrollment until March 31; imposes penalties on fraud; requires audits of states’ compliance with the Hyde amendment barring taxpayer funding on abortions; includes cost-sharing reduction payments; and caps the subsidies at 700% of the federal poverty level.
Coming out of open enrollment, Health Connector enrollment for 2026 is slightly higher than it was at the end of 2025.
Health Connector individual market enrollment for 2026 is 391,744, a 1.6 percent increase compared to total unique enrollees in November and December 2025
...I'm bringing all of this back up again today because I strongly suspect that the situation is about to reverse itself, with the Trump Administration already preparing to brag about impressive-sounding ACA enrollment numbers for 2026 in spite of the enhanced tax credits expiring less than 60 hours from now...even though the actual negative impact of the expiring tax credits (along with several other administrative policy changes made by CMS this year) likely won't be known for several months after Open Enrollment officially ends in January.
