FRANKFORT, Ky.  (Oct. 4, 2013) – More than 16,000 individuals and families in Kentucky are on their way to choosing an affordable health insurance plan.  That’s how many people have started applications on kynect, the state’s online health benefit exchange, since it launched on Tuesday. 

In less than four days, more than 137,000 unique visitors have clicked on the website to learn more about options for affordable health insurance in Kentucky.   

Below statistics reflect activity on kynect as of 7 a.m. Eastern Time today:

·         137,085 unique visitors to kynect.ky.gov; viewing 2,258,612 web pages. 

·         127,483 people – or 93 percent of all site visitors -- conducted pre-screenings to determine qualifications for subsidies, discounts or programs like Medicaid.

·         16,306 applications for health care coverage have been started; 10,778 are completed.

·         4,739 individuals and/or families are enrolled in new affordable health care coverage.

·         166 small businesses have started applications for health insurance for employees.

·         22,507calls managed by kynect contact center at 1-855-4kynect (1-855-459-6328).  

In particular, thousands of Kentuckians are using the kynect call center for immediate troubleshooting as well as general questions about the Affordable Care Act.  The call center, which has managed more than 22,000 calls since open enrollment, offered callers additional tips for a shorter call time: 

·         Early afternoon tends to have a slightly shorter wait time. 

·         If hold time exceeds five minutes, an automated prompt will come online asking if you would like to leave a call back number; do that and a customer service representative will return your call.

·         If you are online and encounter a problem, you may send an email to the call center informing them of your issue, and again, a customer service representative will respond to that help request in a timely manner. 

Kentuckians can visit kynect.ky.gov to comparison shop for health insurance products. Kynect will help uninsured residents get coverage through private insurance plans or Medicaid, as well as the Kentucky Children’s Health Insurance Program (KCHIP).  

During the six-month open enrollment period, Kentuckians will be able to compare and select health insurance plans and discover if they qualify for programs like Medicaid by using the kynect website, calling the toll-free contact center, filling out a mail-in application or by visiting a kynector or insurance agent in their community.  

Kentucky has 640,000 uninsured residents – 92 percent of them will qualify for Medicaid or will qualify for financial assistance to help cover a portion of their healthcare costs.  

Kentuckians who sign up before Dec. 15 will start coverage on January 1.  Open enrollment is available through March 31, 2014.  Individuals and small business owners can also call the kynect contact center for assistance at 1-855-4kynect (1-855-459-6328).