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Insurance agents and consumers faced longer than usual wait times on the federal HealthCare.gov call center's lines Monday, the deadline for insurance that takes effect Jan. 1 — and many were told they would get a returned call up to a week after the deadline, associations representing agents said late Monday. Consumers phone the call center when they have questions or issues with the site or to reset their passwords. (O'Donnell, 12/15)

Consumers rushed to meet a Monday deadline for picking or changing Affordable Care Act health plans for the new year, creating a surge of visitors to HealthCare.gov that tested the revamped site. The federal enrollment portal, which was hobbled by technical problems last year, appeared to hold up well despite a swell in volume, according to people familiar with its operation. Some state-run insurance sites extended enrollment deadlines and in-person sign-up hours due to heavy last-minute demand. (Armour and Radnofsky, 12/15)

MNsure officials say Minnesotans now have until 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 20 to enroll in a health plan through the exchange for coverage starting Jan. 1. The enrollment period was set to close at midnight tonight. (Zdechlik, 12/15)

Minnesota became the second state to push back its deadline to sign up for healthcare coverage on Monday, citing “historic interest” in its program. (Ferris, 12/15)

California's health insurance exchange extended its deadline for consumers who want Obamacare coverage in effect beginning Jan. 1. Uninsured rates fell under Obamacare, but who's reaping the benefit? Peter Lee, executive director of Covered California, said people who start the application process or made some "good faith effort" by Monday will have until Dec. 21 to finish signing up. Monday at midnight was the original deadline. (Terhune, 12/15)

[Alice] Jaye lives in the southwest corner of the state – a region that had extremely high premiums for exchange coverage in the first year of enrollment. Southwest Georgia gained national prominence for those insurance rates, which were reported to be the second-highest in the country, behind only ski resort areas of Colorado. ... With the hours ticking away till the Monday deadline, insurance counselors said ACA coverage appears to be picking up more interest from southwest Georgia residents like Jaye, who would be joining the exchange for the first time. ... This time around, though, the region is seeing significantly lower premiums. The Albany area of southwest Georgia will have a 23 percent drop for the second-lowest silver plan, according to Bill Custer, a health insurance expert at Georgia State University. (Miller, 12/15)

Trying to head off a new round of consumer headaches with President Barack Obama's health care law, the insurance industry says it will give customers more time to pay their premiums for January. America's Health Insurance Plans, the main industry trade group, says the voluntary steps include a commitment to promptly refund any overpayments by consumers who switched plans and may have gotten double-billed by mistake. Though the HealthCare.gov website is working far better this year, the industry announcement highlights behind-the-scenes technical issues between the government and insurers that have proven difficult to resolve. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 12/16)