California, which has the biggest state-run public health insurance exchange, says the number of people who selected a plan surged in the final days of the 2016 open season.
In the last days of open enrollment, which ended Jan. 31, close to 100,000 people signed up for coverage in the California exchange known as Covered California, exchange officials reported last week.
In all, 1.57 million people opted for coverage in Covered California during the 2016 open season, compared with 1.44 million a year ago.
In all, 425,000 individuals selected coverage for the first time during the 2016 open season, while 1.15 million renewed coverage.
Aside from having the largest state exchange, California is second only to Florida — which is in the federal exchange — as the largest exchange. Earlier, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that as of Feb. 1, Florida had 1.74 million enrollees.
In all, 38 states are part of the federal exchange and 12 states plus the District of Columbia have their own exchanges. The exchanges were authorized under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Aided by a last-minute surge, enrollment in public health insurance exchanges hit 12.7 million during the 2016 open enrollment season, the Department of Health & Human Services disclosed Thursday.