More uninsured plan to get health insurance through exchanges

More than half of people who lack health insurance in the United States say they plan to get it through a government exchange, a Gallup poll released Thursday found. 

According to the poll, 56 percent of the uninsured plan to get health insurance through ObamaCare. 

Among the entire public, 53 percent also plan to get health insurance. Thirty-eight percent, on the other hand, say they’re willing to pay a tax penalty.

{mosads}Uninsured people who fail to enroll in ObamaCare by the end of March will have to face that fine.

Fewer uninsured people this month, 72 percent, said they were aware of the federal requirement to sign up. That’s compared to 80 percent who were aware in December. 

Gallup says that change may be the result of the uninsured pool getting smaller as people enroll in new insurance.

Only 23 percent of the uninsured say they have visited a state or the federal exchange websites. In December, 26 percent said they had tried one, and 20 percent said the same when they launched in October. 

A majority, 67 percent, says they’re unfamiliar with the insurance exchanges. By contrast, 31 percent of the uninsured say they are “very” or “somewhat familiar” with the markets.

The poll comes as the March deadline edges closer, and the Department of Health and Human Services reported last week that three million Americans have signed up for private insurance through ObamaCare.