O'care Enrollment Isn't What Barack Says It Is

 No,  2.1 million haven't enrolled in
Obamacare plans
         
BY PHILIP KLEIN | DECEMBER 31, 2013 


With President Obama's health care law scheduled to begin in earnest when the new year kicks
off, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius claimed on a Tuesday conference
call that as of Dec. 28, "2.1 million people have enrolled in a private insurance plan" through the
program.

Later in the call, Sebelius emphasized that enrollments wouldn't be completed until individuals
paid their first month's premiums.

But HHS officials still won't disclose how many of the 2.1 million they claim enrolled through the
federal healthcare.gov website or one of the state-based exchanges actually paid for coverage.

Though Sebelius left the call before the question-and-answer session, Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services spokeswoman Julie Bataille declined several times to provide payment
information.

“At this time we don’t have that detailed information," Bataille said in response to one question.

"What I can share with you in terms of the individuals who have paid their premiums that is
something that consumers will do directly with their health plans. And as part of the outreach that
we have been doing, we have reminded consumers that that is a step that they need to take to
confirm enrollment and access their coverage."

Later in the call, CNN's Jim Acosta asked Bataille if she could at least say with confidence that a
"very high percentage" of those 2.1 million had paid.

Instead of answering in the affirmative, Bataille said, “We are confident that those consumers have
selected a plan and know what the next steps are for them in terms of securing coverage.”

The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that: "As of Monday, however, only about half of
enrollees billed for plans offered by more than 100 insurers in 17 states had paid their first month's
premium, said Mark Waterstraat, chief strategy officer at Benaissance, a third-party billing firm that
works for those insurers."

It isn't clear whether that figure is indicative of the story nationwide, and it's true that insurers have
opted to give individuals until at least Jan. 10 (in some cases longer) to pay their premiums for
coverage beginning on Jan. 1.

But there's no reason to believe Sebelius's claims that 2.1 million have enrolled as of Dec. 28, and
journalists shouldn't report that 2.1 million enrolled until HHS releases data showing that 2.1
million paid for their plans.

During the call, Bataille also declined to provide a demographic breakdown of those who have
selected a plan so far or say how many of the 2.1 million signing up for insurance were previously
uninsured.

Demographic information is important, because it is vital for the exchanges to attract a critical
mass of young and healthy enrollees to offset the costs of covering older and sicker participants in
the program.

Also, because millions of Americans have received cancellation notices from insurers, analysts
want to know whether the law resulted in a net gain of those who have private insurance. Knowing
how many of the 2.1 million signing up were previously uninsured could help provide insight into
the question.

Web URL: http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/2541435