Presented by PBM Accountability Project — 16.6 million people signed up for health coverage{beacon} Health Care Health Care   The Big Story ObamaCare signups hit record again The Biden administration is touting a record 16.6 million people who signed up for health coverage that starts Jan. 1.  © GettyThe Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) said Friday that, of the 16.6 million signees this year, 2 million were new signups.  “We are on track for a record high number of plan selections for this year’s Open Enrollment,” the agency said.   “The record-breaking enrollment in Marketplace coverage speaks volumes about the critical need for health care coverage,” CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said in a statement.   ObamaCare enrollment has hit record highs in every year of the Biden administration, after falling under the Trump administration. The newest numbers come after CMS extended open enrollment by three days amid lagging sign ups.    Enrollment tends to surge in the final days of signups as people wait until the last minute to sign up.   “Like so many of us, Marketplace enrollees can be procrastinators,” Cynthia Cox, vice president and director of the ACA program at KFF said in an email. “It’s also common for existing enrollees to passively renew their coverage by being automatically reenrolled into the same or similar plan as the previous year.”  Signups for health insurance that begins in February will continue through Jan. 15.   Last year, 21.3 million people signed up for insurance through the federal and state-based exchanges, an increase of 5 million over the previous year’s numbers.    The expanded ACA subsidies have been credited with helping boost signups. Those subsidies are scheduled to expire at the end of 2025. With Republicans set to control a trifecta of power in the federal government next year, it seems unlikely they will be extended or made permanent as the Biden administration has called for.   Welcome to The Hill’s Health Care newsletter, we’re Nathaniel Weixel, Joseph Choi and Alejandra O'Connell-Domenech — every week we follow the latest moves on how Washington impacts your health. Programming note: This newsletter will not publish next week. We'll be back in your inboxes with the latest health news Dec. 30. Happy Holidays!  Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.  Essential Reads How policy will be impacting the health care sector this week and beyond:  House passes bill to avert government shutdown after whirlwind funding fight The House approved legislation to avert a government shutdown hours before the deadline on Friday, sending the bill to the Senate for consideration after a whirlwind week on Capitol Hill.  Full Story  Warren, Smith reintroduce bill to strengthen US pharmaceutical supply chainsDemocratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Tina Smith (Minn.) are reintroducing legislation aimed at strengthening U.S. pharmaceutical supply chains, warning the U.S. is overly relying on other countries for medications. The Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Defense and Enhancement Act was first introduced in 2020, not long after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill was spurred by concerns over the U.S.’s pharmaceutical …  Full Story  ‘Bird flu symptoms’: Online searches spike after first severe case in US Health officials on Wednesday confirmed the first severe case of bird flu in the U.S., causing a spike in online searches for symptoms of the virus. There have been more than 60 bird flu infections in people across the country since March. Nearly all have resulted in mild illness. Google searches for bird flu symptoms shot up 500 percent on Wednesday, with the virus topping all trending “symptoms” searches, according …  Full Story   In Other News Branch out with a different read from The Hill: Senate Republicans launch ‘MAHA Caucus’ to promote RFK Jr. agenda A coalition of Republican Senators have joined forces to support Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s proposals as he seeks confirmation as President-elect Trump’s secretary of Health and Human Services. Full Story   Around the Nation Local and state headlines on health care: Louisiana forbids public health workers from promoting COVID, flu and mpox shots (WWNO)  Abortion, insulin prices and period products: Here are the Missouri health bills to watch in 2025 (The Beacon)  Oregon insurance website project was halted over bidder-consultant connection, records show (The Lund Report)  What We're Reading Health news we've flagged from other outlets: Health insurers limit coverage of prosthetic limbs, questioning their medical necessity (CBS)  How America lost control of the bird flu, setting the stage for another pandemic (KFF Health News)  The CDC hasn’t asked states to track deaths linked to abortion bans (Pro Publica)  What Others are Reading  Most read stories on The Hill right now: House passes bill to avert government shutdown after whirlwind funding fight The House approved legislation to avert a government shutdown hours before the deadline on Friday, sending the bill to the Senate for consideration … Read more Live coverage: House passes funding plan to avoid government shutdown Recorded earlier The House voted to support a measure to keep the government funded past Friday night’s midnight shutdown deadline. The Senate … Read more  Close Thank you for signing up! Subscribe to more newsletters here The latest in politics and policy. Direct to your inbox. Sign up for the Health Care newsletter Subscribe