The Obama administration said 5 million Americans have now signed up for health insurance through the exchanges set up by the Affordable Care Act, the president signature legislation.
As we reported, the Congressional Budget Office had projected 6 million Americans would sign up for health care by the end of March, the deadline for open enrollment. The pace for sign-ups has quickened, but The Los Angeles Times reports that may not be enough to get to the White House's original target of 7 million. The paper adds:
"If the pace continues, the Obama administration may come close to registering 6 million sign-ups in the first year that Americans are able to get guaranteed health coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
"That would still fall short of the goal of 7 million that administration officials had hoped to reach before the botched rollout of the new law last fall.
"How many people have actually paid for the health insurance plans they have selected remains uncertain.
"Administration officials have not released data on payments. Unofficial estimates from insurance companies and some state-run marketplaces suggest that as many as 20% of consumers in some markets have yet to pay their premiums, although some of those may not yet have been billed."