New numbers have been released for how many people enrolled through the health insurance exchanges, assuming that they don't already have employee benefits.
In the five months that the open sign-up period has been in effect, approximately 4.2 million Americans have selected plans, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Additionally, in February alone, approximately one in every four were young adults, or those between the ages of 18 and 34.
Kathleen Sebelius, HHS secretary, indicated that based on the fact that more people have signed up, it's likely that a higher number of people will do so as the open enrollment period winds to a close.
"Over 4.2 million Americans have signed up for affordable plans through the marketplace," said Sebelius. "Now, during this final month of open enrollment our message to the American people is this: you still have time to get covered, but you'll want to sign up today – the deadline is March 31."
If it were up to consumers, they'd like more time to sign up. A poll from HealthPocket recently found that approximately 54 percent of respondents said that it would be a good idea to delay the deadline if the goal of signing up 7 million people wasn't achieved by the end of March. The remaining 46 percent said it should remain no matter how many individuals select plans in the remaining weeks.
Last year, Sebelius told NBC News that HHS and the White House was aiming for at least 7 million Americans to purchase plans by March 31. It looks as though that goal will not be reached, as 2.8 million would have to sign up in less than three weeks.
