Deadline looms to register for Affordable Care Act coverage


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CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — However the Republican majority in Congress and President-elect Donald Trump decide to meet promises to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, Wyoming officials say it appears people who sign up for federally subsidized insurance now are likely to remain covered through next year.

The deadline is approaching fast for people in Wyoming to register for insurance coverage for next year under the federal program.

Wyoming Insurance Commissioner Tom Glause said Wednesday that people have to sign up by Dec. 15 and make their first premium payment before the end of the year to have insurance coverage starting New Year's Day. The last day to register is Jan. 31, but Glause said people who wait that long won't see their coverage kick in until March 1.

Trump has pledged to roll back the Affordable Care Act. Congressional Republicans likewise say they are eager to repeal and replace the law.

However, Glause said he's confident established policies will be honored for 2017. Insurance companies nationwide already have entered into contracts with the federal government to provide coverage for 2017, he said.

"I would expect that whatever repeal and replace looks like would not take effect until Jan. 1 of 2018 at the earliest," Glause said. "There will be a transitional period, I'm fairly certain of it. It may be a longer transitional period, but everything is already in place for 2017."

Just over 6,400 people in Wyoming enrolled as of Nov. 26 compared with over 6,700 at the end of last November, Glause said.

Earlier this year, Glause said a total of 23,770 people were registered for coverage through the federal health insurance marketplace by the Jan. 31 open enrollment deadline, up from about 21,000 who registered in 2015.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Wyoming is the only company offering insurance under the program in the state.

Company official Wendy Curran said recently that health insurance rates for Wyoming residents under the federal Affordable Care Act are set to climb an average of 7 percent next year. In September, Blue Cross Blue Shield was insuring around 24,000 people, Curran said.

Under the existing program, tax credits to offset the cost of coverage are available to people below 400 percent of the federal poverty level.

More than 80 percent of people who registered for the program nationwide qualify for a tax credit, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

In Wyoming, the average tax credit was $454 a month this year — enough to cover 80 percent of the gross premium. The agency stated the average premium after tax credits was $117 a month.

Denise Burke, senior policy and planning analyst at the insurance department, said some calculations of the rate of uninsured people in Wyoming exceeded 18 percent before the Affordable Care Act.

Current figures put the rate of uninsured at between 10 to 13 percent, Glause said. "There has been a decrease in the uninsured rate since the ACA was implemented," he said.

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