Covered California Logo

via Covered California:

  • The virtual tour will reach into media markets across California to promote open enrollment and the increased financial help that is now available, which is lowering the cost of coverage for more people than ever before.
  • An estimated 1.1 million Californians are uninsured and eligible for financial help, including 83,000 in San Diego County, with the vast majority able to get coverage at no cost through either Covered California or Medi-Cal.
  • New data from Covered California shows how much protection and peace of mind insurance provides, with the uninsured facing staggering out-of-pocket costs if they visit an emergency room or are admitted into a hospital.
  • People who want their coverage to start on Jan. 1, 2022, must sign up by Dec. 31, 2021. Covered California’s open-enrollment period runs through Jan. 31, 2022.
New York State of Health

via NY State of Health:

  • Consumers Must Renew or Enroll by December 15 for January 1 Coverage
  • Expanded Tax Credits and Financial Assistance Available for 2022 Plans
  • Customer Service Hours Extended to Help New Yorkers Enroll

ALBANY, N.Y. (December 7, 2021) - NY State of Health, the state’s official health plan Marketplace, today announced that the deadline is fast approaching for New Yorkers who want coverage in a Qualified Health Plan (QHP) by the start of the 2022 New Year. Consumers must renew or enroll in a health plan through NY State of Health by December 15, 2021, for coverage starting January 1, 2022. The Open Enrollment Period for QHPs started November 16 and will run until January 31, 2022.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Methodology reminders:

  • I go by FULLY vaccinated residents only (defined as 2 doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine).
  • I base my percentages on the total population, as opposed to adults only or those over 11 years old (or even over 4 years old).
COVID

Here's the weekly look at the rate of COVID-19 cases & deaths at the county level since the end of June, broken out by partisan lean (i.e, what percent of the vote Donald Trump received in 2020).

The ratio of case rates has started to drop; new cases are now running 2.67x higher per capita in the reddest tenth of the country than the bluest tenth, down from 3.0x higher six weeks ago:

Access Health CT Logo

via Access Health CT:

Connecticut residents can work one-on-one with enrollment specialists to help them shop, compare and enroll in quality health insurance

HARTFORD, Conn. (Dec. 3, 2021)—Access Health CT (AHCT) today announced it will host three enrollment fairs in December to help Connecticut residents get free, in-person help to shop, compare and enroll in quality health insurance plans. Enrollment fairs are one-day events in addition to Access Health CT’s five other enrollment locations and Navigator partner locations where Connecticut residents can find free, in-person help now and until Open Enrollment ends Jan. 15, 2022.

All in-person enrollment fairs will be held from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. at the following locations:

Connect for Health Colorado Logo

via Connect for Health Colorado:

Get Covered Colorado Day is December 8

DENVER- December 8, 2021, is Get Covered Colorado Day. The day of action is to encourage as many Coloradans as possible to enroll in 2022 health coverage during the annual Open Enrollment Period. Open Enrollment is the time of year to renew your health plan, change plans or sign up for a plan if you’re uninsured. This year, more residents shopping through Colorado’s health insurance exchange, Connect for Health Colorado, can expect increased plan choice and even more health insurance savings.

“Ensuring every Coloradan has access to high-quality, affordable health care has been a primary focus of our Administration since day one,” said Lt. Governor and Director of the Office of Saving People Money on Health Care Dianne Primavera. “Get Covered Colorado Day is the perfect opportunity for uninsured Coloradans to sign up, or to remind friends and family that they can save money on their health care by shopping for plans on Connect for Health Colorado.”

NPR Logo

Yesterday there was a bit of a brouhaha caused when NPR reporters Geoff Brumfiel and Daniel Wood published an in-depth report on the partisan divide when it comes to county-level COVID-19 vaccination and death rates, which was heavily influenced by my own work over the past seven months, including two hour-long interviews in which we went into in-depth discussions of data sources, methodology and conclusions.

The controversial aspect was due to the fact that their published piece originally failed to mention my involvement or assistance in any way whatsoever.

After being called out on this by myself and others, Brumfiel called me to personally apologize and rectify the situation. To his credit, he took full responsibility and specifically noted that his colleague, Daniel Wood, had nothing to do with the oversight. Also to his credit, he arranged for the NPR story to be quickly updated to mention my assistance by name as well as to link to one of my own related COVID data analysis posts:

December 5, 2021, 10:33am: See important updates at bottom.

NPR, December 5, 2021, 5:00am EST:

Pro-Trump counties now have far higher COVID death rates. Misinformation is to blame

by Daniel Wood, Geoff Brumfiel

Since May 2021, people living in counties that voted heavily for Donald Trump during the last presidential election have been nearly three times as likely to die from COVID-19 as those who live in areas that went for now-President Biden. That's according to a new analysis by NPR that examines how political polarization and misinformation are driving a significant share of the deaths in the pandemic.

Cover ME Logo

Just yesterday I realized that CoverME, Maine's new state-based ACA exchange, had issued their first enrollment report for the first 2 weeks of the 2022 Open Enrollment Period.

It turns out that the same day I posted about it, the Maine HHS Dept. was posting a second report which runs through the first four weeks:

CoverME.gov Open Enrollment Update: November 1-27

The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Office of the Health Insurance Marketplace (OHIM) today released an update on plan selections through CoverME.gov, Maine’s new Health Insurance Marketplace.

OHIM provided the first update on November 18 and will continue updates every two weeks throughout open enrollment, which began on November 1, 2021 and ends on January 15, 2022.

Since the start of open enrollment through November 27 on CoverME.gov:

BeWellNM Logo

BeWell NM, New Mexico's just-launched state-based ACA exchange website, has posted their first Open Enrollment report for the 2022 OEP:

In week four of the 2022 Open Enrollment Period, over 37,000 New Mexicans have an active plan selection. This includes 4,698 existing enrollees who chose a new plan or actively chose to keep their current plan, 2,505 new consumers, and 30,509 passive re-enrollees. There were also 8,061 dental plan selections. Consistent with CMS, enrollment weeks are measured Sunday through Saturday.

Passive enrollees were handled earlier for this year to support the transition from Healthcare.gov to New Mexico’s solution. This offers additional time for payment to ensure that New Mexicans who have a plan stay covered. Individuals can still shop, compare, and change their plan.

Pages

Advertisement