NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nearly 60,000 Tennesseans signed up for coverage under the federal health insurance exchange through January, a 66 percent increase since the beginning of year.
According to nationwide statistics released Monday, 3.3 million Americans signed up from last Oct. 1 through Feb. 1.
Seventy percent of enrollees selected the mid-level silver plan, while just 5 percent chose the top-level platinum policies.
Hope Clinic in Murfreesboro is one of the places mid-state residents can go to for help navigating the health exchange. The clinic’s Cindy Rhae says January was busy, but things have slowed down since.
“We’ve assisted 700 people all together. February we’ve seen it slow down a little bit. We are expecting March to be busy because the end of open enrollment is March 31st.”
Of those who have signed up in Tennessee, adults ages 55 to 64 made up 33 percent of the total, while young adults between 18 and 34 made up 25 percent. Independent experts say young adults need to make up 40 percent of the total to keep costs under control.