Minnesota: Impressive! 67.7K QHPs thru 12/28 (over 80% of target w/5 weeks to go)

I've been getting a little worried about the Minnesota exchange of late. Their first two years were pretty rough, and their most recent update prior to today had them at only 26.5K QHPs as of 12/13. Of course, that didn't include the critical final few days before the January enrollment deadline...nor did it include the extended deadline for Minnesota, which was pushed all the way out to 12/28.

Well, it looks like my concerns were unfounded, and the extension definitely did the trick, because MNsure just announced that as of 12/28/15, they had enrolled 67,680 people in private policies:

Nearly 68,000 Minnesotans Enroll in Private Plan Coverage for 2016 through MNsure

Eighty percent of goal reached with one month of open enrollment remaining

January 04, 2016

ST. PAUL, Minn.—Today, MNsure announced 67,680 Minnesotans enrolled in a qualified health plan through the state-based marketplace between November 1 and December 28, 2015. MNsure’s goal is to enroll 83,000 Minnesotans in a qualified health plan by January 31, 2016, the end of the open enrollment period. In addition, 15,072 Minnesotans have enrolled in MinnesotaCare, 35,153 in Medical Assistance and 5,597 in a qualified dental plan since November 1. These numbers are preliminary and are not yet final.

The press release also includes MNsure's official OE3 target of 83,000, which is slightly higher than my assumption of 80,000 even (I didn't know what their internal target was at the time). This means they've hit 81.5% of their own target and 84.6% of mine.

“These preliminary enrollment numbers are very encouraging,” said CEO Allison O’Toole. “We have more private plan enrollees now than we did at the end of the last open enrollment period. The message of MNsure saving people money is resonating. We will continue to work aggressively toward meeting our enrollment goals.”

Of the 67,680 qualified health plan enrollees, approximately 40 percent are new to MNsure. The remaining are renewals from the 2015 coverage year.

OK, so that's about 40.6K renewals + 27.1K new additions. Very nice.

While the deadline for January 1 coverage has passed, Minnesotans still have until January 31 to see if they may qualify for financial help available only through MNsure, and enroll in coverage.

“Open enrollment is not over. There is still time to take advantage of the real savings MNsure offers to Minnesotans,” said O’Toole. “If you’re still contemplating your health insurance coverage options, you have until January 31 to see if MNsure can save you or your family real money.”

One year ago, on January 1, 2015, MNsure had 28,217 enrollees in a private health insurance plan, and ended up enrolling 60,092 when open enrollment ended on February 15, 2015.

The 2016 open enrollment period began November 1, 2015, and will end on January 31, 2016. Small group employers and Minnesotans eligible for Medical Assistance or MinnesotaCare can enroll year round. As of May 2014, 95 percent of Minnesotans have health coverage—the highest percentage in state history.