More Montanans enroll for health insurance on exchange than in recent years – Ravalli Republic

The number of Montanans who signed up for a health care plan on the federal exchange jumped 14% for the enrollment period that ended earlier this month compared to last cycle’s figures.

A total of 51,134 Montanans enrolled in a plan during the period that ran from Nov. 1 to Jan. 15. Across the country, a record-high 14.5 million people enrolled on the exchange established under the Affordable Care Act. That number could increase as the period is still open in some states.

While Montana’s enrollment did not break the state’s high of 58,114 set in 2016, it did outperform the last four years’ average of about 45,400 signing up for coverage.

In a press call Thursday morning, Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said nationally the increase in enrollment was 21% over the year prior.

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Several changes made in the federal American Rescue Plan Act passed last year resulted in lower premiums for many people who bought insurance on the market place this cycle.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid estimated that because of increased tax credits to offset premiums, an average person saved about $50 per person a month or $85 per policy each month. It was estimated that for four out of five enrollees, plans would cost $10 or less a month and half of those seeking insurance would be able to purchase a silver plan for $10 or less.

“We helped reduce health care costs by passing the American Rescue Plan, which … made it possible to offer the tax credits, which are critical to reducing the cost,” said U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra in a press call Thursday morning.

This enrollment cycle saw the return of more funding for navigators that help people do everything from learn about what plans offer to signing up for coverage. In Montana, the Montana Primary Care Association received a $1 million grant to help Montanans learn how to sign up for health insurance on the exchange and get assistance with the application process. The association operated a website and hired people in communities around the state, in addition to offering a phone helpline.

Last year CMS awarded $80 million in grants that funded 60 navigator programs across the country. Funding for the navigator program was cut during the Trump administration to $10 million awarded each year between 2018 and 2020. Last year’s amount of money available was also higher than the $63 million in grants during the last year of the Obama Administration, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Becerra told reporters the outreach efforts were “unpreceded” and included a quadrupling of navigators, in addition to a special enrollment period last spring in repose to the pandemic.

While Montana’s funding for the program dropped 80% between 2016-2020, it was up 102% this cycle compared to 2016, according to KFF.

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