Obamacare enrollment tops 2.1 million with 250,000 new consumers added in last 2 weeks, CMS says

Though the future for Obamacare is uncertain under President-elect Donald Trump, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Wednesday said more than 273,059 new consumers signed up for coverage on the exchange in the last two weeks while 856,440 consumers renewed their coverage.

That means more than 2.1 million people have selected plans on HealthCare.gov since open enrollment began on November 1. That includes more than 519,000 new consumers and 1.6 million consumers who renewed their coverage.

Enrollment weeks are measured Sunday through Saturday. However, since this year's enrollment began on a Tuesday, the cumulative totals reported actually reflect two fewer days than last year's Week 4 snapshot.

Enrollment so far this year exceeds last year's total, CMS said.

"With plans available for less than $75 per month in premiums, 2.1 million Americans have already selected coverage through HealthCare.gov, more than had signed up at this time last year," said outgoing Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell. "I hear from people across the country just how much coverage matters to them, so I continue to encourage all Americans who need health insurance for 2017 to visit HealthCare.gov and check out their options."

The deadline to enroll is December 15 for coverage starting January.

Trump on Tuesday named fierce Obamacare opponent Rep. Tom Price to lead HHS. Though the president-elect said early after his election that his administration would like to keep some provisions in the Affordable Care Act, his nomination of Price suggests much of the law will in fact be repealed and replaced.

Twitter: @BethJSanborn