Brooklyn, N.Y. – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke released to following statement in celebration of health insurance marketplace enrollment of more than seven million, a number that exceeds initial estimates, as enrollments in states that operated an exchange (such as New York and California) are added to the total. Officials with the White House also expect the total number of people enrolled to increase substantially in the next few weeks, as people who have started applications for health insurance complete those applications and are enrolled.
 
There was a deadline of March 31, 2014 to enroll in health insurance for the current year. But anyone who has started an application will have another two weeks to the process of enrollment.
 
“The enthusiasm of people in states across the country has become obvious in recent weeks, as millions of Americans have learned that the Affordable Care Act offers comprehensive health insurance at a reasonable cost, without restrictions based on pre-existing conditions or discrimination toward women. In effect, Americans have come to learn that the Affordable Care Act offers a fair deal. I am proud to have voted for the Affordable Care Act, and to have voted to protect the law. As we continue the implementation of the health care law, I intend to work with my colleagues – both Democrats and Republicans – to update its provisions and to improve the quality of service.
 
“These enrollment numbers demonstrate that our parents were correct – without struggle, there is no progress . In the states that worked with the federal government, such as New York, California, and Kentucky, enrollment in health insurance marketplaces actually exceeded estimates by a substantial amount. And millions more Americans were enrolled in Medicaid in the states that chose to expand access to Medicaid by increasing income limits.
 
“In the states that refused to work with the federal government, however, the experience was entirely to the contrary – millions of eligible women and men who lack health insurance did not enroll in an affordable plan because even basic information was unavailable, and misinformation proliferated.
 
“It is my hope that, as more people learn about the benefits of expanded access to health care insurance in the states that have worked with – rather than in opposition to – the federal government, the people in states that have not cooperated in implementing the Affordable Care Act will demand that their elected officials support the desires of the people they represent and work with the Department of Health and Human Services to allow every American to purchase comprehensive health insurance.”