California health exchange to release enrollee details

California’s health insurance exchange is set to provide the first detailed information about the roughly 60,000 people who have signed up for coverage since open enrollment under the federal health care reforms began Oct. 1.

The figures are to be released during the Covered California board meeting Thursday. They will test some of the agency’s claims that the program is working effectively, including whether enough younger and healthy people are signing up.

Executive Director Peter Lee said last week that more than 59,000 people had signed up for private insurance health plans through the exchange through Nov. 12.

Nationwide, officials have acknowledged that early sign-ups have skewed toward older, sicker people who need health insurance. If that trend continues, it could lead insurance companies to increase premiums in 2015.