The Mid-Atlantic state of Delaware is the second smallest by area, divided into just three counties, fewer counties than even smaller Rhode Island has. Yet Delaware has the nation’s sixth-highest population density. The first state to ratify the Constitution traditionally votes for the Democratic presidential candidate. In 2008 and 2012, former President Obama easily won Delaware’s electoral votes, helped by the fact that former Vice President Joe Biden had served as a senator in the state since 1973. Delaware supported the Affordable Care Act (ACA) when it was challenged in the Supreme Court and opted to expand its Medicaid program per the new law.
Enrollment Through the Years
Residents of Delaware use the federal marketplace to enroll in Obamacare coverage plans. The state saw an increase in enrollments between 2015 and 2016 but a decrease in enrollments between 2016 and 2017.
- 25,036 Delawareans enrolled in 2015
- 28,256 Delawareans enrolled in 2016
- 27,584 Delawareans enrolled in 2017
In 2017, there were 7,449 new enrollees from Delaware signing up for ACA plans. Re-enrollments between 2016 and 2017 totaled 20,135 customers. Delaware’s most-enrolled demographic as of 2017 is the 55-64 age group, the pool of older health care consumers who haven’t yet reached the minimum age for Medicare coverage. The state did expand Medicaid under new federal guidelines, and as a result, 67,900 additional people in Delaware have enrolled in the program.
Cost Assistance
Certain eligible enrollees who choose an ACA plan on the marketplace are eligible for cost assistance. In general, these enrollees must earn 100 to 400 percent of the federally-established poverty limit. Those who earn 250 percent of the federal poverty limit or less and choose a silver-level health care plan are eligible for cost-sharing reductions (CSR).
As of 2017, 45 percent of Delawareans who were enrolled in ACA plans received CSRs. In 2017, 81 percent of those enrolled in a marketplace health care plan in Delaware were receiving cost assistance as federal subsidies. These subsidies reduced the monthly cost of their premiums.
Carrier Participation & Plan Availability
Delaware had more than three insurance carriers participating in the marketplace in 2018 and three carriers in 2017. In 2017, Delaware carriers offered 60 plans. Plan availability in marketplace health care plans typically varies by county.
