More in state, region sign up for health care

Southern Maryland News

By Nicole Clark

When Brenda Oliver would have sinus problems, she'd usually tough it out for days in bed, taking Tylenol and lozenges and hoping the severe pain in her throat would disappear. She went without health insurance for about seven years.

Oliver, of Mechanicsville, said a friend talked her into signing up for health insurance through the Maryland Health Connection, which in part helps state residents determine their eligibility for private and government care under the federal Affordable Care Act.

"I'm getting up in age," said Oliver, 58. So, in December, she went to the Leonardtown Health Connections office and enrolled. Oliver said she didn't qualify for Medicaid, and instead got a government-subsidized private insurance plan, with its fees also based on income, costing her about $32 a month.

"Maybe, I'll go to a doctor now," Oliver said. "That feels good, just to know I can do that."

During a three-month period — Nov. 15 to Feb. 15 — 264,245 Marylanders signed up for health care through the Maryland Health Connection. Of that number, 145,149 enrolled in Medicaid. And 119,096 enrolled in private insurance plans. Initial data shows that signups for private care essentially doubled from one open-enrollment period to the next during the past year.

During a six-month enrollment period from Oct. 1, 2013, to March 31, 2014, 63,002 Marylanders signed up for private care. During that same period, 232,075 enrolled in Medicaid.

That first enrollment period was extended, primarily because of failures in technology with the state website and in hopes of allowing more people to enroll, said Andrew Ratner, Maryland Health Connection marketing director.

To date, St. Mary's has seen 2,728 new signups, along with 5,109 in Charles and 2,553 in Calvert, according to a Maryland Health Connection report.

"We're very pleased with the numbers," Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md., 5th) said Wednesday during a press conference. "The fact that so many people signed up in such a short period of time, and that the system worked and worked so well is a good thing."

The Affordable Care Act, he said, will be beneficial to "literally millions and millions of people."

There is still time for some applicants to enroll. If Marylanders started filling out a form before the Feb. 15 open enrollment deadline, they will have until Feb. 28 to complete their applications.

Medicaid enrollments are open all year, but may have more stringent qualifying factors. The next open enrollment period for private insurance is tentatively set for mid-October through early December, Ratner said.

If residents are found to be without health care, many will be assessed tax penalties, up to $95 per person per household for 2014, and $325 per person per household in 2015, under terms of the Affordable Care Act. According to the Internal Revenue Service, there are limited exceptions to who may be penalized, including some low-income earners.

The penalties, Ratner said, are set to encourage people not to wait until they have a serious illness to obtain insurance. If such delays happened on a wide-scale, the Affordable Care Act would not generate revenue needed to cover care for those who are enrolled.

Oliver said she had been getting medical bills she couldn't afford while she was uninsured. And "I'm still paying on some emergency visits," she said.

Enrolling for coverage ended up being a relief, she said. "It was like a load lifted off of your mind when you walked out of there."