Delaware panel gets update on Affordable Care Act numbers

 (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

(AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

Delaware’s health care commission is getting an update on enrollment in the state’s health insurance exchange under the Affordable Care Act.

Thursday’s scheduled briefing comes as federal officials report that 5,471 Delawareans have signed up for coverage during the current open enrollment period, which end Dec. 15.

For the current plan year, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, which has more than 90 percent of the individual market share in Delaware, has been granted an average premium increase of 22.4 percent for individual plans. Aetna Health and Aetna Life Insurance Co. were approved for average individual premium increases of just under 17 percent.

Meanwhile, the penalty for not having coverage in 2016 is 2.5 percent of annual household income, or $695 per adult and $347.50 per child, whichever is higher.

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