Health care enrollment is strong but unlikely to match last year

Americans are signing up in growing numbers for the Affordable Care Act’s subsidized health insurance, the government said Wednesday. But enrollment season was cut in half and there’s only about a week to go, so the final tally could fall short of last year’s numbers.

About 3.6 million signed up through Saturday in states served by the HealthCare.gov website, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. That’s about 20% higher than the comparable period last year. This year’s open enrollment ends Dec. 15.