Biden made 'Obamacare' cheaper, now sign-up deadline is here

Midnight on Sunday is the deadline for consumers to take advantage of a special “Obamacare” sign up period, courtesy of President Joe Biden

WASHINGTON -- With the Obama health care law undergoing a revival under President Joe Biden, this Sunday is the deadline for consumers to take advantage of a special sign-up period for private coverage made more affordable by his COVID-19 relief law. A strong close would bolster Biden's case that Congress needs to make permanent the temporary boost in health insurance subsidies provided by the COVID legislation. His campaign promise to build on existing programs to move the U.S. toward coverage for all may also gain credence. The government says more than 2.5 million people have signed up since Biden ordered the HealthCare.gov marketplace to reopen Feb. 15 to account for health insurance needs in the pandemic. Then, starting in April, the cost of coverage came down due to sweeter subsidies in the COVID law, which attracted more enrollment. Officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, are hoping that this deadline weekend in mid-August will surprise skeptics. “We've seen even in the last couple of weeks increased interest in enrollment,” Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said in an interview. “When you make coverage more affordable, people buy it. What we need to do is to make coverage more affordable.”