The number of Mainers who have signed up for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act has increased by 69 percent in the law’s second year of coverage.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported this week that as of the Feb. 15 deadline, 74,792 Maine residents had selected an insurance plan from the federal marketplace set up by the ACA. That’s up from the 44,258 Mainers who enrolled for all of 2014.
Nationwide, roughly 11.4 million people have enrolled so far in 2015, compared with about 8 million in 2014. The 2015 number does not yet include updated figures from 11 states.
Among the 39 states whose numbers were available Wednesday, 11 saw growth at a higher rate than Maine from 2014 to 2015. Louisiana topped the list with 81 percent more enrollees this year. Michigan had the slowest rate of growth at 25 percent.
As of Feb. 6, Maine had enrolled 53 percent of those eligible for individual ACA coverage, according to a Kaiser Foundation report. That’s the fourth-highest rate in the nation, behind Vermont, Florida and the District of Columbia, and well above the national average of 37 percent.
A major component of the Affordable Care Act, adopted in 2010, was the creation of online health insurance marketplaces to give individuals and families who are uninsured, self-employed or paying a lot for minimal coverage a place to shop for more affordable plans.
About half the states, including Maine, decided not to establish their own marketplaces, but residents can purchase coverage through the federal exchange, accessible online at healthcare.gov.
Of the 11.4 million people enrolled in 2015, 8.6 million signed up through the federal marketplace.
“In the final day, more new consumers signed up for health coverage than on any other day this open enrollment or last,” Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell said in a written statement. “The Affordable Care Act is now an important part of the everyday lives of millions of Americans. While we have more work to do, the numbers tell the story, and the story is clear. The Affordable Care Act is working, and families, businesses and taxpayers are all better off as a result.”
There are several tiers of coverage, including more expensive plans for more comprehensive coverage. There also is wide variation from state to state. Mainers, for instance, had 25 health plan options this year, up from 17 in 2014.
The Affordable Care Act also offers subsidies on a sliding scale, based on income, for people who earn as much as 400 percent of the federal poverty level – about $79,000 a year for a family of three.
According to federal DHHS data, 89 percent of Maine consumers who were signed up as of Jan. 30 qualify for an average tax credit of $337 per month.
In 2014, nearly 90 percent of Mainers received subsidies. The average monthly premium in 2014 was $443, but only $99 after subsidies were applied.
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