Covered California faces post-election questions

Members of the board of Covered California are reacting cautiously to the results of the Nov. 8 elections.

The Affordable Care Act public exchange headed into the individual major medical open enrollment period for 2017 providing coverage access for 1.3 million people, or about 3 percent of all state residents.

Board members and other speakers noted several times during a meeting today that Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, signed the bill that helped bring Covered California to life.

Diana Dooley, the board chairwoman, said she has tried to avoid speculating about how the law might change in the future.

“Where we might headed is a little hard to answer,” Dooley said. “I think we have more questions than answers.”

The exchange already has 2017 contracts in place with the exchange plan issuers, Dooley said.

“We will continue to honor those as the law allows,” Dooley said.

Related: HealthCare.gov attracts 246,433 new customers

Dooley said Covered California has tried to be nimble, and responsive to local needs, and she expressed the hope that the exchange might be able to advise policymakers.

Open enrollment 2017

The open enrollment period for 2017 started Nov. 1 and is set to run until Jan. 31.

Peter Lee, the exchange executive director, reported that, as of Nov. 8, the exchange had relationships with 14,580 certified insurance agents, 2,244 certified application counselors and 1,488 certified plan-based enrollers.

The exchange held off on its marketing campaigns until after the election was over, but it has received applications from 44,000 people who are new to Covered California.