2023 Affordable Care Act Marketplace Enrollment Breaks Historic Records

Affordable Care Act marketplace enrollment broke the previous all-time high by surpassing 16.3 million signups for the 2023 plan year, CMS and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.

“On the tenth anniversary of the ACA Marketplaces, the numbers speak for themselves: more people signed up for plans this year than ever before, and the uninsured rate is at an all-time low,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure.

Enrollment levels exceeded the levels for the previous year by 13 percent and surpassed the enrollment levels since President Joe Biden took office in 2021 by 50 percent. The enrollment surge included 3.6 million new signups, a 21 percent increase over the previous year.

Nearly 3.5 million enrollees were returning consumers who enrolled on state-based marketplaces. During the 2022 open enrollment period, state-based marketplaces saw a surge in enrollment due to new outreach methods grounded in data and cultural competency. Almost 603,000 of the Affordable Care Act’s new enrollees in 2023 enrolled in state-based marketplace plans, almost 17 percent of all new enrollees.

Additionally, nearly eight out of ten enrollees were individuals who had active coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplace in 2022 and either were automatically re-enrolled or selected an Affordable Care Act plan in 2023.

For the 2023 plan year, most enrollees had access to plans from three or more health insurance companies as well as standardized plans.

Additionally, four out of five individuals who returned to HealthCare.gov to find an Affordable Care Act marketplace plan for 2023 had access plans with premiums of $10 or less per month using expanded premium tax credits.

“Unprecedented investments lead to unprecedented results,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra.

“Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, more than 16 million Americans have health insurance through the Affordable Care Act Marketplaces – an all-time high. The Biden-Harris Administration has made lowering health care costs and expanding access to health insurance a top priority – and these record-breaking numbers show we are delivering results for the American people. We will keep doing everything we can to ensure more people have the peace of mind that comes with high-quality, affordable health care.”

The previous year’s enrollment numbers were record-breaking at the time.

For plan year 2022, the Affordable Care Act marketplace gained 5.8 million new enrollees. There were 14.5 million total signups that year, of which approximately 11.5 million were already enrolled on the Affordable Care Act marketplace. At the time, experts attributed the surge to improved outreach investments and strategies.