BOSTON -- Uninsured residents can still sign up for health insurance after Thursday's deadline imposed by the state.
The agency overseeing the new state law requiring residents to have health insurance said anyone enrolling after the deadline would suffer a $219 tax penalty.
But several companies offering insurance through the Health Insurance Connector Authority, which oversees the health care law, say people can enroll in coming weeks and avoid the tax penalty.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is offering same-day enrollment, allowing people to sign up through December without penalty.
Company spokesman Chris Murphy says the one exception is the plan for people ages 19-to-26, which must be purchased through the Connector.
In the past year, 200,000 people in Massachusetts have obtained health insurance as a result of the law, the bulk of them through free or subsidized programs.
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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