Once again, California’s Obamacare operation is offering wiggle room for those who haven’t managed to complete their insurance signups before the end of open enrollment.
Consumers who begin the enrollment process — or even make an appointment with an adviser — are being given until midnight Feb. 6 to complete their applications. A similar extension was offered last year.
“Covered California knows that health care coverage is too important, and people should not be turned away just because they get caught up in a wave of last-minute shoppers,” said the organization’s executive director, Peter Lee.
Covered California cited “a surge of enrollment that saw tens of thousands of consumers enroll in health insurance plans this week.”
Lee added: “If you get started before Sunday, our certified enrollers and Service Center representatives will help you get across the finish line by Feb. 6.”
Through Jan. 27, more than 329,000 new enrollees had picked a health coverage plan during the current open-enrollment period, Covered California said Jan. 28.
The agency said consumers had placed more than 120,000 calls to its service center Jan. 25-28, with wait times averaging less than three minutes. Waiting times were a significant problem for Covered California in its first two years, but appear to have been reduced.
More than 148,000 consumers have enrolled in the new (optional) family dental coverage, the agency said.
During the 2015 open enrollment, Covered California offered two Affordable Health Care extensions, including one for taxpayers who were required to check a box called “Informed of Tax Penalty Risk,” indicating they did not realize there was a tax penalty. There was also a special seven-day extension for those who struggled with the signup process.
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