To have health coverage from HealthCare.gov starting on January 1, Americans must sign up by December 15. On December 15, 2016, 670,000 people selected a plan, “the biggest day of any Open Enrollment ever.”
In 2015, as applications surged in the final weeks, the government extended the deadline by two days, to December 17. In 2016, “to meet high demand,” it extended the deadline by two business days, to December 19.