Health Insurance Health Reform

Is Health Exchange enrollment overstated?

Over 8 million people have signed up for a health plan through the health insurance exchanges created by the Affordabe Care Act (a.k.a. Obamacare).  Or have they?  Although policymakers may say that this is the truth, leaders at America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), say that these figures may be overstated for two reasons:

 Changing enrollment: In early February, CMS implemented the functionality for Exchange enrollees to voluntarily terminate their plan or to report a “life event” (i.e., a change in circumstance, such as a new baby or job, which allows a special enrollment period). While this functionality serves a valid purpose, it creates challenges in calculating accurate enrollment data and payment rates.
Duplicate enrollments: Because of the challenges that surfaced with the launch of the Exchanges in October 2013, some consumers were advised to create a new account and enroll again. As a result, insurers have many duplicate enrollments in their system for which they never received any payment. In cases where an insurer has a new enrollment for a consumer who previously enrolled, they are not expecting that original policy to be effectuated – even though that data is still reported.

Hat tip: InsureBlog.

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