The White House on Thursday released final data from the first enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act, which also included a look at each state's relative success or failure in the law's first enrollment period.
Nationally, just more than 8 million people enrolled in health insurance plans through federal and state exchanges established by the law. But the story was different in all 50 states and the District of Columbia — some wildly exceeded expectations, and others brutally disappointed.
This chart shows which states did well in signing up people through their exchanges, and which did poorly:
Here's a look at that in map form:
Some of the states that immediately jump out include Vermont, which signed up more than 6% of its population — more than a full percentage point above the next most-effective state, Florida. Nationally, about 2.6% of Americans signed up for private health insurance made available by the Affordable Care Act between Oct. 1 and March 31, surpassing the law's original goals.
But overall, the final results present a stark contrast from December, when HealthCare.gov was floundering and state-based exchanges dominated in signing up people for insurance. The federal exchange, which serves 36 states, did its part to make up for a lackluster start. Sign-ups more than doubled in the last month of enrollment — from about 2.6 million on March 1 to 5.4 million by the end of enrollment. State-run exchanges also saw a significant increase — from 1.6 million to 2.6 million — but it wasn't nearly as astronomical.
Interestingly, much of the uptick in enrollment came from red-leaning and/or other swing states. Enrollment in Florida, for example, jumped from about 442,000 through the first five months to about 555,600 by its end. More than 55,000 Louisiana residents enrolled in the final month. Texas exploded from 295,000 through February to 733,757 by the end of the period. And in South Dakota and Alaska, respectively, enrollment doubled in the final month.
"Americans across the country want the affordable coverage offered through the marketplaces," a Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson said on a conference call Thursday.
Here are some other demographic stats about the 8 million enrollees:
- 54% are female and 46% are male;
- 34% are under age 35;
- 28% are between the ages of 18 and 34
- 62.9% of those reporting are white;
- 16.7% are African American;
- 10.7% are Latino;
- 7.9% are Asian.