(Host) Fewer people than expected are enrolling in state-sponsored Catamount health plans.

A state oversight commission is digging into the numbers. Officials aren't sure of the reasons for the low enrollment. They say some of the estimates may have been wrong to begin with.

VPR's John Dillon reports.

(Dillon) The Health Care Reform Commission looked at the difference between enrollment projections for the various Catamount health plans - and the actual number of people who signed up.

Commission member John Bloomer pressed for details on why fewer people are enrolling than had been projected. He pointed out that for one subsidized Catamount plan, enrollment was about 40 percent below the estimates.

But Susan Besio - the Douglas Administration's point person on health care reform - said that the state used rough projections based on the best information at the time.

(Besio) "When people put out projections, that's exactly what they are, they are estimates based on estimates. And so to assume that we have failed because we have not met that 25,000 target that was thrown out without a lot of analysis or data, frankly, during the legislative session, is an incorrect conclusion."

(Dillon) Since last October, the state has marketed various health programs under the umbrella of Green Mountain Care. The insurance offerings include Catamount plans and existing Medicaid coverage.

Most of the plans are offered on a sliding scale to people whose income is below 300 percent of the federal poverty level. But one Catamount plan is open to everyone without health insurance. The plan is priced below commercial insurance plans, yet it's still not attracting many customers.

By May, for example, the state had projected 2,500 people would enroll, but only 470 have signed up.

Besio said she wasn't sure why people are choosing not to get coverage.

(Besio) "I don't know why people are not signing up at full cost, other than the cost."

(Dillon) About 60,000 people in Vermont lack health insurance. A large number, about 25 percent, are young people. The state has launched an outreach effort aimed at 18 to 25 year olds. The campaign targeted new college graduates, and included a rock concert in Burlington.

Kevin Veller heads the marketing effort for Green Mountain Care. She said the program got a big boost from Vermont colleges.

(Veller) "They put fliers where the seniors pick up their caps and gowns, they put the flier on the chair during graduation rehearsal. They stocked the offices of career planning and placement offices in preparation for the summer."

(Dillon) This fall, the state will conduct a comprehensive survey of the uninsured. The commission hopes the information will help guide future outreach efforts.

But the members are worried about how many young people will actually get counted in the survey. The survey will be conducted by telephone. But many people under the age of 30 only use cell phones. They're not listed in the phone book, and may be hard to reach.

For VPR News, I'm John Dillon in Montpelier.