Obamacare sign-up is off to a solid start

More than half a million people signed up for Obamacare plans during the first week that government-run markets were open in what is projected to be a challenging year of trying to reach new people who haven’t yet gotten insurance under the law.

In total, 543,098 people picked plans on the U.S.-run website for health insurance. HealthCare.gov opened for business Nov. 1, about two weeks earlier than last year, when about 462,000 people signed up for coverage during the first week of enrollment. The numbers aren’t perfectly comparable to last year because Hawaii is now using the U.S. system.

The deadline to sign up for policies that take effect on Jan. 1 is Dec. 15, and the last day to pick a 2016 policy is Jan. 31.

Bloomberg News

This story was originally published November 12, 2015 at 3:30 PM with the headline "Obamacare sign-up is off to a solid start."