the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reported.
That’s a drop of 3.3%, compared with the 12.2 million enrollees for 2017, and a drop of 7.1% from the peak year of 2016, according to the 2018 open enrollment final report.
For 2018, the average premium before application of the premium tax credit was $621 in the HealthCare.gov states, which is an increase of 30% from the $476 average for 2017. After the tax credit, the average premium for 2018 was $153.
“Our primary goal this year was to ensure that Americans who wanted coverage through the exchange had a seamless experience,” CMS Administrator Seema Verma said in a statement. “We are pleased that consumer satisfaction was the highest it’s ever been during the 2018 open enrollment period.”