N.J. sees record number enroll in Obamacare plans, gov says
New Jersey enrolled a record high 324,000 people in the state’s individual health insurance marketplace under the Affordable Care Act. The increase was a 20% jump over the previous year.
TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey enrolled a record high 324,000 people in the state’s individual health insurance marketplace under the Affordable Care Act, Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy said this week.
The increase stemmed from open enrollment, which ran from Nov. 1 to Jan. 31, and was a 20% jump over the previous year.
The jump comes after state and federal financial aid aimed at reducing economic fallout from the COVID-19 outbreak.
The 2021 federal American Rescue Plan set a ceiling of 8.5% of income for the cost of health insurance, for instance.
New Jersey also boosted the amount of subsidies available for people earning up to $77,280 for individuals and $159,000 for a family of four.
The insurance covers people in the so-called individual market. In other words, people who don't get health coverage from their jobs.
For certain lower-income people the marketplace provides access to plans with low or zero monthly premiums, according to the state Department of Banking and Insurance.
The Affordable Care Act, frequently referred to as Obamacare, has survived multiple attempts at being overturned before the Supreme Court.
The health law is now undergoing an expansion under President Joe Biden, who sees it as the foundation for moving the U.S. to coverage for all. His giant COVID-19 relief bill significantly increased subsidies for private health plans offered through the ACA’s insurance markets, while also dangling higher federal payments before the dozen states that have declined the law’s Medicaid expansion.
More than 900,000 have signed up with HealthCare.gov and through state-based exchanges like New Jersey’s for 2022, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.