Amid a less-than-ideal start to health insurance exchanges, the Obama Administration is extending the pre-existing condition insurance plan for one month.
Insuring about 135,000 of the sickest uninsured Americans as a bridge to the new insurance market, the high risk pool program will now be phased out after January, instead of this month, for enrollees who have not yet been able to enroll in a new plan.
"As part of our efforts to smooth the transition to the marketplaces for those seeking coverage that begins in January, we are taking steps to ensure that Americans enrolled in the federal PCIP insurance plan will not face a lapse when the new year begins," said Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services spokesman Aaron Albright in a media statement.
It's unknown how many PCIP enrollees will continue coverage for the month or how many are encountering website problems hindering them from enrolling in new plans. In any case, Albright said the goal is to give them additional time to review their options and find health plans with benefit arrangements and provider networks best suited to their needs.
Some state PCIPs are also mulling an extension, Albright said.
The federal PCIP program has been a mixed success, enrolling less than half of the 375,000 that Medicaid's chief actuary predicted while also costing quite a bit more than budgeted for. The $5 billion fund started running dry sooner than predicted, with claims of $32,108 per enrollee in 2012, and CMS had to cut provider payments this past summer to stretch the money.