New York: Final 2019 #ACA Open Enrollment Tally: 272K QHPs, 790K BHPs

Mon, 02/04/2019 - 1:44pm

This just in via NY-based Politico healthcare reporter Dan Goldberg...

@charles_gaba final tally from NY: QHP 271,873; EP 790,152; 22% enrollees were new and 78% re-enrolled for a QHP. Number were 12%, 88% for EP

— Dan Goldberg (@DanCGoldberg) February 4, 2019

This is 6,664 QHP selections higher than the 1/29 tally, or slightly more than the 5,000 I expected NY to tack on for the final two days of Open Enrollment. New York wrapped things up with an impressive 7.4% increase in QHP enrollees over last year and a 6.9% increase in Essential Plan (BHP) enrollment.

UPDATE: Here's the official press release with a few more details:

ALBANY, NY (February 4, 2019) — NY State of Health, the state’s official health plan Marketplace, today announced more than 4.7 million New Yorkers have enrolled in comprehensive health coverage through the Marketplace, an increase of more than 435,000 people from 2018. Marketplace enrollment is at its highest point ever, including more than 1 million (1,062,025) people enrolled in Qualified Health Plans and the Essential Plan. Reflecting both strong customer loyalty and the Marketplace’s continued ability to attract new enrollees, 86 percent of enrollees were returning from last year and 14 percent were new in 2019.

Again, those numbers include both QHPs and BHP enrollments.

“Despite the continued uncertainty at the federal level, New Yorkers were undeterred this Open Enrollment Period,” said NY State of Health Executive Director Donna Frescatore. “Covering more than 4.7 million people is truly a milestone, and we will continue our commitment to bring affordable, comprehensive coverage to New Yorkers.”

NY State of Health attributes another successful Open Enrollment Period to its strong product offerings and its commitment to getting its positive messages out to consumers. In 2019, New Yorkers once again had a broad choice of high quality, affordable health plan options in every county of the state. With 12 insurers offering Qualified Health Plans and 16 insurers offering the Essential Plan statewide, most consumers had a choice of four insurer options in their county. Ninety-five percent of Marketplace enrollees saw no change in the cost of coverage compared to last year. And NY State of Health was committed to getting these positive messages out to consumers, through its “You Deserve Affordable Health Care” advertising campaign, at more than 300 community outreach events, and by sending nearly four million emails to consumers reminding them of important steps needed to complete their enrollment.

As of January 31, 2019:

Total Marketplace enrollment is: 4,767,624

Enrollment in Medicaid through the Marketplace is: 3,287,846

Non-Medicaid program enrollment is 1,479,778:

271,873 in a Qualified Health Plan – including:

158,332 (58 percent) who enrolled with financial assistance

113,541 (42 percent) who enrolled without financial assistance

790,152 in the Essential Plan

417,753 in Child Health Plus

Child Health Plus is a New York-specific program; it was the basis for the CHIP program which enrolls more than 8 million children nationally.

New and Renewing Enrollees:

Qualified Health Plan:

22 percent of enrollees were new in 2019

78 percent of enrollees renewed for 2019

Essential Plan:

12 percent of enrollees were new in 2019

88 percent of enrollees renewed for 2019

New York’s commitment to the Marketplace is unwavering – NY State of Health again extended its open enrollment period for three months to ensure that consumers would have the time needed to enroll. The state also maintained funding levels for advertising and navigators to ensure consumer awareness and the availability of valuable in-person enrollment assistance. New Yorkers responded: during the 2019 Open Enrollment Period, website traffic and call center volume surged, with nearly 1.7 million website visitors and over 1.5 million calls to Customer Service, including over 34,000 calls on January 31 alone. In-person assistors helped more than three-quarters (78 percent) of enrollees complete their marketplace applications.