The federal government extended the deadline for enrolment into the health insurance exchanges provided for by the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
From the original December 15 deadline, enrollees can sign up for coverage until January 1 next year, according to a report by the Washington Post.
This is the second consecutive year in which the deadline has been extended.
The decision to extend the enrolment is a result of interest from an “extraordinary volume of consumers,” ACA Health Insurance Marketplace chief executive Kevin Counihan was quoted as saying by the publication.
Around 4 million people have signed up for health plans on the marketplaces as of the start of this week, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The Obama administration forecast enrolment to hit 11 million in 2017.
