Governor Tom Wolf announced that today begins the 2022 Open Enrollment Period for health care coverage through Pennie, Pennsylvania’s state-based health insurance marketplace.
“Pennie is the one-stop shop for Pennsylvanians’ health care needs,” Gov. Wolf said. “With Pennie, Pennsylvanians have access to a variety of resources to help them understand how to apply, shop, and enroll in health coverage including access to people who can help them right in their community. Pennie also provides financial assistance for those who qualify, which means health care coverage is more affordable for Pennsylvanians. Now, more Pennsylvanians can access the care they deserve, ultimately giving more people the opportunity to live healthier lives.”
Gov. Wolf was joined by Philadelphia Mayor James Kenney, Pennsylvania Health Access Network Executive Director Antoinette Kraus, Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Jessica Altman, and Pennie Executive Director Zachary W. Sherman at the Mayor’s Reception Room in Philadelphia to make the announcement.
In July 2019, Gov. Wolf signed legislation establishing the state-based marketplace. Pennie replaces healthcare.gov as Pennsylvania’s official destination for shopping for quality health insurance plans and the only source for financial assistance to help with the cost of coverage and care. Currently there are nearly 344,000 Pennie customers throughout the commonwealth.
“Now is the time to sign up for low-cost, quality coverage through Pennie. As a result of the American Rescue Plan premium savings, coverage has never been more in reach for so many Pennsylvanians,” said Zachary Sherman. “Nine out of 10 Pennie customers qualify for savings which have increased in value for low-income individuals, working families and near-retirees. Open Enrollment is the opportunity for Pennsylvanians to protect their health and their budgets by getting the coverage they need to ensure access to care. We encourage the uninsured and anyone exploring their coverage options to visit pennie.com to enroll by Dec 15 for coverage that starts New Year’s Day.”
“As Open Enrollment begins for 2022 plans, it’s an important time to celebrate just how far we’ve come on access to affordable, high-quality healthcare in Pennsylvania,” said Antoinette Kraus. “In the past year and a half, Medicaid and the ACA marketplace proved themselves to be a lifeline for Pennsylvanians by ensuring people maintained access to healthcare during a public health crisis; almost a million Pennsylvanians are now covered by Medicaid Expansion, and over 340,000 buy their insurance through Pennie.com.”
In addition to Pennie, Gov. Wolf expanded Medicaid in 2015, ensuring more Pennsylvanians have access to Medical Assistance in Pennsylvania. Today, more than 3,300,000 Pennsylvanians are covered by Medical Assistance including almost 1 million people through the expansion. By expanding access to health care, the commonwealth realized the lowest uninsured rate in Pennsylvania history during the Wolf Administration and insurance rates are now the most stable year over year that they’ve ever been.
“We’re all better off when affordable health care is accessible to all,” said Gov. Wolf. “There’s more we need to do to ensure health equity in the commonwealth and my administration will continue to fight for true equity but expanding access to health care through Medicaid and ensuring affordable coverage is available through Pennie are both important steps. I encourage all Pennsylvanians who need health insurance coverage to go to www.pennie.com to explore your options. Open Enrollment begins today, and the Pennie team is standing by to serve you.”
Individuals should visit www.pennie.com to learn more about Pennie or call Pennie customer care at 1-844-844-8040.
