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| - FACT CHECK: Biden Claims 21 Million Americans Are Covered By ACA, A 9 Million Increase Since Taking Office
President Joe Biden said in April 3 remarks that 21 million Americans are covered through the Affordable Care Act (ACA), an increase of 9 million since he took office.
Verdict: True
These statistics are accurate, according to spokespeople for the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Fact Check:
Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders have joined together on Wednesday to discuss objectives to cut healthcare costs for Americans, according to ABC News.
During the same remarks, Biden claimed 21 million Americans are now covered through the Affordable Care Act, a 9 million increase since he took office in 2021. “Today, 21 million Americans are covered through the Affordable Care Act, 9 million more than when I took office,” he said.
This claim is accurate. Data from the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) shows around 12 million Americans were enrolled when Biden took office in 2021 and around 21 million Americans are enrolled now.(RELATED: Has Biden Not Been To Wisconsin In Two Years?)
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) directed Check Your Fact to a report from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) stating over 21.4 million Americans selected or re-enrolled in health insurance through HealthCare.gov Marketplaces and State-based Marketplaces during the 2024 open enrollment period.
Swapna Reddy, a clinical associate professor at Arizona State University’s College of Health Solutions, directed Check Your Fact to a January CMS press release. It shows 21 million people chose ACA Marketplace coverage in 2024, a “widely used” figure, according to Reddy.
A CMS spokesperson pointed Check Your Fact to an HHS press release that shows total 2024 Health Insurance Marketplace enrollment at more than 21.4 million. The spokesperson also referenced a White House fact sheet showing that an additional 9 million people enrolled since Biden took office.
Nancy Nielsen, senior associate dean for health policy at University of Buffalo, told Check Your Fact via email that the claim is true, pointing to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation for corroborating statistics.
“These 21.3M people (5 M are newly insured) are the folks who got health insurance through the ‘Marketplace’ in 2024, and that, plus Medicaid expansion in all but 10 states, dropped the uninsured rate in our country from 19% to about 7.7%. If the states had all chosen to expand Medicaid, the uninsured rate would be even lower,” Nielsen said. “There has been a bit of an increase in the number of uninsured since eased Medicaid eligibility requirements from the ACA were allowed to lapse recently, and state Medicaid rolls were updated to reflect those who no longer qualified.”
Check Your Fact has reached out to the White House for comment.
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