Maryland state officials plan to give residents seeking ACA health insurance until Dec. 22 to sign up, according to The Baltimore Sun.
The deadline was extended from Dec. 15 to avoid high numbers of last-minute enrollments and to accommodate Marylanders who have delayed enrollment.
The state adopted the shortened 45-day enrollment period for purchasing ACA health insurance on the federal exchange set by President Trump's administration. However, Maryland operates its own online marketplace for residents who do not receive insurance through their jobs and was able to extend the deadline.
The enrollment extension negotiated with Maryland's two health insurance carriers, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield and Kaiser Permanente, allows consumers to have more time to browse insurance options while still beginning coverage for everyone at the start of 2018.
Enrollment in Maryland's Upper Eastern Shore territory has already increased 40 percent since this time last year, said Marck Romaninsky, senior director at Seedco, a group that assists with signing up for coverage through a contract with the federal exchange.
"There are things we can do to shore up the ACA," said Vincent DeMarco, president of the Maryland Health Care for All Coalition. "But the enrollment shows Marylanders want the law to succeed."