Washington exchange sets record for medical insurance signups

OLYMPIA – A record number of Washington residents used the state’s system to help them find health insurance before the sign-up period closed Tuesday night.

The Washington Healthplanfinder was used by more than 225,000 people to choose a medical insurance plan, a 13 percent increase from last year, the Health Benefit Exchange reported Thursday.

Another 60,000 used the system to sign up for dental insurance.

In the last week of the sign-up period, traffic was more than double 2016, with nearly 500,000 visitors to the online site. The customer service center handled more than 44,000 calls in the last seven days, and nearly 12,000 in the final hours of the enrollment period.

People who signed up for a medical or dental plan must make their first premium payment to activate their coverage.