Of this year’s Obamacare enrollees, about 1.5 million haven’t yet paid for their plans, the Obama administration announced Tuesday.
Of the 11.7 million Americans who bought health coverage through the new online insurance marketplaces, about 10.2 million had paid as of the end of March, officials said. The vast majority of those, about 85 percent, received federal subsidies to help them afford their plans.
“The health insurance marketplaces are working,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell. “We’ve seen a historic reduction in the uninsured and consumers are finding the coverage they need at a price they can afford.”
The enrollment update also shows many Americans stand to lose insurance subsidies should the Supreme Court uphold the King v. Burwell challenge this month. The case alleges that the healthcare law’s text doesn’t allow the subsidies to be awarded in states relying on healthcare.gov instead of operating their own marketplaces.
More subsidy recipients stand to lose their financial assistance than don’t, if the justices side with the challengers. Around 7.5 million enrollees live in states with federal-run exchanges while 2.7 million live in states running their own.
Affordable Care Act enrollment officially ended mid-February, although people facing a fine for being uninsured last year were allowed to sign up through the end of April. Enrollment for 2016 starts Nov. 1.
