In 2013, 6 million people signed up for health insurance coverage because of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, according to a report from The Washington Post.
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told reporters on a conference call 2.1 million people had signed up for health plans through the exchanges as of Dec. 28, including 1.1 million who enrolled through HealthCare.gov and 1 million who chose coverage through the state-based exchanges. An additional 3.9 million people have been determined eligible for Medicaid. At this time, the White House doesn't have information regarding enrollee demographics, according to the report.
The Obama administration has fallen short of its goal of 3 million exchange enrollees (excluding those deemed eligible for Medicaid) by the end of 2013. Enrollment numbers have been lower than expected because of the numerous technical issues that have plagued HealthCare.gov. However, following repair efforts, the site could support 83,000 concurrent users as of Dec. 23, and enrollment has been rising, according to HHS.
Some health policy experts have predicted the PPACA exchanges will fall short of the Congressional Budget Office estimate of 7 million enrollees by March 31. Others think the site could still reach that target as a result of federal officials repairing HealthCare.gov and the likelihood of people waiting until the last minute to enroll.
