According to new data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the number of Texans who have signed up for health care coverage through HealthCare.gov has been higher than ever.
More than 20 million Americans, including 3.3 million Texans, have signed up for the healthcare program. Enrollment numbers increased 24% across the country and 36.5% in Texas since the last open enrollment period. The state has seen these enrollment numbers nearly triple in the last three years.
“We’ve made record-breaking progress in expanding coverage and lowering health care costs for American families, saving them money and giving more Americans the peace of mind that comes with affordable health insurance,” said President Joe Biden in a statement.
There is a high possibility that this number will increase.
“This is a huge success! We’re thrilled to see the federal government’s investment is paying off, with millions of people across Texas and the nation now getting the insurance they need to stay healthy,” said Karla Martinez, senior policy analyst at Every Texan.
The statistics are especially important because Texas has the largest number of uninsured people in the U.S. Hence, becoming one of the states with the highest rate of enrollment over the last three years is a welcoming trend.
“We’re on track for another year of record-breaking enrollment, making it clear that Texans want and value comprehensive healthcare coverage when the price is affordable,” Martinez added. “Clearly our elected officials can improve access to affordable health care when they make it a priority.”
Some state healthcare policy watchers attribute the high turnout to the release of around two million Texans from the Medicaid rolls, a countrywide initiative to restore the program to pre-pandemic levels. According to CMS, nearly 2.4 million ACA enrollees were in Medicaid or Children’s Health Insurance Programs previously.
Around 95% of Texas consumers get financial help getting healthcare coverage, and four in five customers can find health coverage for $10 or less per month. The plans on HealthCare.gov cover prescription drugs, doctor visits, urgent care, and hospital visits, among other things.
Who is uninsured?
According to Texas 2036, barriers like cost, difficulty in navigating systems, and concerns about legal risks prevent people from availing of health insurance. Based on their estimates, around 1.5 million of the five million uninsured Texans likely qualify for a no-cost plan via the ACA marketplace.
Moreover, Texas could save “hundreds of millions of dollars in premium fees that it currently pays to the federal government to operate the ACA exchange for the state.” Per the federal government, Texans have saved an average of $560 annually on the health care premiums they pay for ACA marketplace insurance coverage. They could save because of the federal tax dollars to health care subsidies and premium tax credits via the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act and the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, according to the White House.
Texas 2036 has categorized people based on the following: those who look for cheaper ways to get health care, those who are unable to afford it, those affected by medical or non-medical tragedies, mothers and caregivers who prioritize the insurance needs of their dependents over their own, and the undocumented.
There are also internal barriers, like a lack of urgent concern about one’s health or “unrealistic expectations” about the price of care as adults. According to the organization, there are young and healthy people who do not have major health concerns and older, unhealthier people who do not perceive their health issues as an immediate concern. Then, there are people who live in denial about their health issues.
There are some benefits of Texas running its own exchange, like streamlining the enrollment process to make it easier for the uninsured to navigate, improving outreach, and rebranding the exchange as a product of Texas. These can help increase enrollment numbers as well.
