SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Covered California™ and the California Department of Health Care
Services (DHCS) announced today that from Oct. 1, 2013, to Jan. 31, 2014, under
the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, 27,853 consumers in mostly
rural Northern California counties enrolled in subsidized and non-subsidized Covered
California health insurance plans. The new total represents a 41 percent increase
from the 19,732 enrollments recorded through Dec. 31, 2013.
The improving pace of enrollments in the northern counties is due in
part to enhanced aspects of Covered California’s customer service. The agency
has increased staff to answer consumer calls, added phone lines, improved its
website efficiency, expanded its live Web chat function and upgraded its
Spanish-language Web pages.
The Northern
California counties of Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Del Norte,
Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta,
Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne and Yuba represent about 4
percent of the statewide enrollment. The local total includes 25,188 consumers
eligible for financial subsidies. These counties encompass Covered California
pricing region 1.
For the four-month period, which is two-thirds of the
open-enrollment period for 2014 coverage, 728,410 consumers enrolled in plans
statewide.
Tables and graphics showing enrollment by metal tier and
health insurance plan in each region are available online at: www.CoveredCA.com/news/PDFs/JanRegionalEnrollmentTables.pdf and www.CoveredCA.com/news/PDFs/jan-regionals.pdf.
About Covered California
Covered California is the state’s marketplace for the
federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Covered California, in
partnership with the California Department of Health Care Services, was charged
with creating a new health insurance marketplace in which individuals and small
businesses can get access to affordable health insurance plans. With coverage
starting in 2014, Covered California helps individuals determine whether they
are eligible for premium assistance that is available on a sliding-scale basis
to reduce insurance costs or whether they are eligible for low-cost or no-cost
Medi-Cal. Consumers can then compare health insurance plans and choose the plan
that works best for their health needs and budget. Small businesses can
purchase competitively priced health insurance plans and offer their employees
the ability to choose from an array of plans and may qualify for federal tax
credits.
Covered California is an independent part of the state
government whose job is to make the new market work for California’s consumers.
It is overseen by a five-member board appointed by the Governor and the Legislature.
For more information on Covered California, please visit www.CoveredCA.com.
About the Department of Health Care Services
The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) works to
preserve and improve the physical and mental health of all Californians. DHCS
provides health care services for approximately 9.4 million Californians
through Medi-Cal, including medical, dental, mental health, substance use
treatment services and long-term services and supports. This is accomplished
through an investment of approximately $70 billion annually in public funds for
the care of low-income families, children, pregnant women, seniors and persons
with disabilities. DHCS focuses on delivering quality, effective services
primarily through coordinated systems of care provided by 21 Medi-Cal managed
care plans located in all of California’s 58 counties. For more information
about DHCS, please visit www.dhcs.ca.gov.
