ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Wednesday's sign-up deadline for health insurance that starts with the new year caps off a smoother start for the state health insurance exchange's second year.

MNsure officials said Wednesday the website was stable and call wait times remained short as Minnesotans rushed to beat the noon deadline.

It's a big change from 2013's open enrollment period when the website frequently crashed. But a handful of problems persist.

The exchange has struggled sending enrollment data to insurance companies so they can register consumers and send out ID cards. And as many as 700 customers have faced larger upfront costs due to errors in calculating tax credits for coverage online.

Eileen Smith from the Minnesota Council of Health Plans says MNsure has improved but it still needs some work.

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