Health Insurance Enrollment Ends Saturday – NBC Connecticut

The COVID 19 pandemic has shined a light on our health care system. It’s also contributed to a seven percent increase in enrollment in Connecticut’s health insurance exchange.

And if you haven’t enrolled yet, there’s an important deadline coming up.

“We have 110,960 enrollees this year which is 7 percent above where we were at this point and time last year,” Caroline Lee Ruwet, director of marketing for Access Health CT, said. 

Ruwet said more than 110,000 Connecticut residents have already signed up for plans through Access Health CT.

“Enrollment is brisk and that is in large part due to the pandemic. We never before had realized the importance of public health as much as we’re seeing it right now,” Ruwet said.

Access Health is the only place to purchase health insurance and qualify for a federal subsidy to lower the cost of your monthly premium.

“There’s 11,000 people who are newly eligible for financial help,” Ruwet said.

That’s thanks to $85 million from the American Rescue Plan.

“People are losing their jobs, losing their employment, losing their health coverage and having to come access these services which are important for people and necessary for individuals,” Luis Irizarry of the Community Renewal Team said.

Irizarry, who helps sign people up for Access Health, said enrollment has been brisk.

“We just hand out pamphlets, we go door-to-door, and just handing out information to individuals who are hard to reach, who probably don’t have access to the internet,” Irizarry said.

“You can get a reasonable plan for a low cost,” he added. 

Anyone looking to enroll in coverage must do so online by going to their website, by phone or in-person by midnight Saturday.

“Open enrollment ends tomorrow at midnight. So January 15 at midnight. There are a lot of opportunities to shop, compare and enroll if you haven’t done so already,” Ruwet said.

The call center will be open until 8 p.m. Friday and midnight Saturday. The number is 855-805-4325.