On Tuesday, October 1, the President’s health care overhaul went “live” in the form of insurance exchanges where consumers can find health care plans and determine any applicable federal subsidies they may be eligible for. The launch was met with numerous failures on both the state and federal level including web site errors, incorrect premium estimates and hours of wait time for technical assistance.
Report from Reuters:
Technical glitches and heavy internet traffic slowed Tuesday’s launch of new online insurance exchanges at the heart of President Barack Obama’s healthcare reform, showcasing the challenge of covering millions of uninsured Americans.
The opening itself represented a victory for Obama’s signature domestic policy achievement after years of attack from Republican foes and delays in building the technology infrastructure to support sites in 50 U.S. states. It defied a partial federal government shutdown precipitated by Republican efforts to delay the law’s implementation.
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Reuters checks in at least 47 states throughout the day turned up frequent error messages or traffic overload notices, particularly for 36 sites run by the federal government. One frequently observed glitch involved a page asking the user to answer security questions that either went blank or would not accept new data. Kansas officials urged residents to wait a few weeks for the “bugs” to be worked out before enrolling.
What does Obamacare mean for you and your family? Will it give you access to health insurance? Did you lose your existing plan because of it or have your premiums doubled?
For me personally, Obamacare has meant a 20% increase in my health insurance premiums in 2012 and 2013 and the cancellation of my existing plan and enrollment in a new plan with a higher deductible and more cost. These increases were due entirely to changes required by the Affordable Care Act according to my insurance carrier.
