Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday warned New Jerseyans they have only 12 more days to sign up for Obamacare for 2019, just as statistics show enrollment in the state is down 16 percent compared to this time last year.
The drop is despite a major new marketing push from Murphy’s administration lobbying Garden State residents to take advantage of former President Barack Obama’s signature health-care overhaul.
Murphy stressed that open enrollment for health care next year under the Affordable Care Act — the law’s formal name — lasts only until midnight Dec. 15.
“This is crunch time,” the Democratic governor said during a news conference at Elizabeth Public Library. “Now is the time to act.”
Residents can enroll online or at dozens of in-person locations, such as Elizabeth’s library.
As of Nov. 24 — the halfway point of the enrollment period that began Nov. 1 — only about 66,000 people have signed up through New Jersey’s ACA marketplace, according to figures from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. That’s down from 79,000 at this point last year.
Those numbers do not include those who buy health care off the Obamacare exchange.
The falloff comes even though Murphy’s administration launched a website — getcovered.nj.gov — and allocated $825,000 in state money this year to promote enrollment.
“We are proving that the ACA works and we are leading the fight across our country,” Murphy said after introducing the website last month.
The focus is a shift from Murphy’s Republican predecessor, former Gov. Chris Christie, who was against Obamacare and did little to promote it in his eight years leading New Jersey.
Murphy also announced in September that New Jerseyans seeking Obamacare next year will see average premium rates decrease by 9.3 percent thanks to a pair of new state laws.
The governor said Monday that would save the average Garden State family $1,500 a year.
But, Murphy added, “these savings don’t exist until you enroll.”
Though Republicans in Congress ended the federal “individual mandate” under Obamacare that required U.S. residents to have health care, Murphy signed a law in May preserving the mandate in New Jersey.
That means residents in the state must be covered by Jan. 1, or pay a fee at tax time.
“Unless you qualify for an exemption, you will pay a penalty," Marlene Caride, commissioner of the state Department of Banking and Insurance, said at Monday’s event. "So please, do not delay.”
Murphy stressed Monday that Obamacare enrollments are down across the country. At the halfway point of enrollment, 2.4 million people have signed up for a plan on the federal health insurance exchange, according to the CMS statistics. That’s down from 2.8 million at the time last year.
The governor suggested part of the reason is pushback against Obamacare from Republicans in Washington, D.C. That includes a decision by President Donald Trump’s administration to cut the open enrollment period from three months to six weeks and slash the advertising budget for the health-care law.
“There can be any number of reasons why the numbers are down, but we’re not going to take a break or make excuses when we still have 12 days to go.," Murphy said.
The governor also cautioned that most Obamacare enrollment happens in the final few weeks.