ObamaCare’s Problems Much Worse Than The Obama Administration Had Previously Let On Posted November 6, 2013 The ObamaCare Launch Suffered More Problems Than Were Initially Reported. “A stack of daily updates written by ObamaCare contractors shows the October rollout hit more walls than previously known: In the first days, half of the calls to the phone center had problems, paper applications could not be processed and up to 40,000 people at a time were sitting in the waiting room of HealthCare.gov.” (Lisa Desjardins, “Documents Show First Days Of ObamaCare Rollout Worse Than Initially Realized,” CNN, 11/6/13) The ObamaCare Launch Was Described As “Chaos.” “More than 100 pages of ‘war room notes’ released by congressional investigators on Tuesday offer a window into the chaos that overwhelmed the Obama administration as the federal health insurance marketplace started up last month and officials realized that its problems could not be fixed quickly.” (Robert Pear, “Notes Reveal Chaotic White House Talks On Health Care Site,” The New York Times , 11/6/13) Despite Claiming That Personal Information On The ObamaCare Site Was Secure, Security Continues To Be Compromised Security Concerns Of The ObamaCare Website Have Aroused Suspicions That Corners Were Cut On Security Testing To Meet The October 1 Launch Deadline. “Obama administration officials are facing mounting questions about whether they cut corners on security testing while rushing to meet a self-imposed deadline to launch online health insurance markets.” (Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, “Health Website’s Security Prompts Worries,” The Associated Press, 11/6/13) The Part Of The ObamaCare Website That “Stores Personal Information” Had Not Been Fully Tested Prior To Launch. “Documents show that the part of HealthCare.gov that consumers interact with directly received only a temporary six-month security certification because it had not been fully tested before Oct. 1, when the website went live. It’s also the part of the system that stores personal information.” (Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, “Health Website’s Security Prompts Worries,” The Associated Press, 11/6/13) “Administration Officials Say They Remain Confident It Is Secure.” (Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, “Health Website’s Security Prompts Worries,” The Associated Press, 11/6/13) But Earlier This Week, Technicians Scrambled “To Make A Software Fix … After Learning That A North Carolina Man Tried To Log On And Got A South Carolina Man’s Personal Information.” “The administration insists the trouble-prone website is secure, but technicians had to scramble to make a software fix earlier this week after learning that a North Carolina man tried to log on and got a South Carolina man’s personal information. A serious security breach would be an unwelcome game-changer for an administration striving to turn the corner on technical problems that have inconvenienced millions of consumers and embarrassed the White House.” (Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, “Health Website’s Security Prompts Worries,” The Associated Press, 11/6/13) IT Security Experts Have Said That The Administration Should’ve Completed “End-To-End Testing” Before Launch. “Two computer security experts interviewed by The Associated Press said that clearly the better option would have been to complete testing. ‘The best scenario is to have done end-to-end testing,’ said Lisa Gallagher, vice president of technology solutions for the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, a medical technology nonprofit. That it wasn’t done ‘would cause me some mild concern,’ she continued, adding she would advise a relative or close friend to wait until the website is stabilized before plunging in.” (Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, “Health Website’s Security Prompts Worries,” The Associated Press, 11/6/13) Since Its Launch, ObamaCare Has Faced Numerous Enrollment And Website Problems “The Website Was Not Working Properly From Day 1.” “The documents show that officials were focused on addressing individual bugs, rather than the larger issue: The website was not working properly from Day 1.” (Robert Pear, “Notes Reveal Chaotic White House Talks On Health Care Site,” The New York Times , 11/6/13) On Day 1, The ObamaCare Website Had “Mistakenly Rejected 90 Percent Of Medicaid Applicants.” “According to the war room notes: On day one, October 1, the system mistakenly rejected 90% of Medicaid applicants.” (Lisa Desjardins, “Documents Show First Days Of ObamaCare Rollout Worse Than Initially Realized,” CNN, 11/6/13) On Day 3, Insurers “Were Not Getting The Data For People Who Had Signed Up.” “The next day, estimates counted 40,000 people in the HealthCare.gov waiting room, while just 100 people had enrolled. By day three, it was clear that insurers were not getting the data for people who had signed up for their plans.” (Lisa Desjardins, “Documents Show First Days Of ObamaCare Rollout Worse Than Initially Realized,” CNN, 11/6/13) “On Day Six, Utah Asked To Shut Down Its Exchange.” “Systemwide issues were compounded by more isolated problems. On day six, Utah asked to shut down its exchange because the main insurance provider in the state had not been able to set up its template in the system.” (Lisa Desjardins, “Documents Show First Days Of ObamaCare Rollout Worse Than Initially Realized,” CNN, 11/6/13) On October 8, Paper Applications Were Unable To Be Processed. “At the same time, the paper applications starting to arrive were in limbo. ‘Serco still cannot process online the 500+ applications they have,’ reads one line from October 8 war room notes. Serco is the company paid to handle all the paperwork involved with the Affordable Care Acts sign-ups. Website problems meant that Serco, like individual consumers themselves, could not file applications online.” (Lisa Desjardins, “Documents Show First Days Of ObamaCare Rollout Worse Than Initially Realized,” CNN, 11/6/13) According To The Memos, Only 700 Online Enrollments Had Been Completed By October 8. “It’s unclear is how many people succeeded in enrolling in new insurance plans through the online portal during October. As of Oct. 8, according to the memos, it was “700+ enrollments.” (Devin Dwyer, “‘ObamaCare’ Memos Reveal Chaos, Confusion Of October Rollout,” ABC News, 11/6/13) On October 9, The ObamaCare Website Had “Skipped Some Questions Or Information For 30 Percent Of All Applicants.” “A few days later, on October 9, contractor notes say that the entire system has skipped some questions or information for 30% of all applicants.” (Lisa Desjardins, “Documents Show First Days Of ObamaCare Rollout Worse Than Initially Realized,” CNN, 11/6/13) “On Oct. 11, It Was Noted That The Website Was Inaccurately Calculating Premium Subsidies For Low-And Middle-Income People.” (Robert Pear, “Notes Reveal Chaotic White House Talks On Health Care Site,” The New York Times , 11/6/13) The Obama Administration Approved “Anonymous Shopping” For Inaccurate Health Care Plans. “The documents show that officials debated whether to allow consumers to shop for insurance without creating personal, password-protected accounts. The Obama administration eventually allowed such ‘anonymous shopping,’ but, according to the notes, officials realized that the premium estimates shown on the website were not entirely accurate because they did not reflect different prices charged to people of different ages.” (Robert Pear, “Notes Reveal Chaotic White House Talks On Health Care Site,” The New York Times , 11/6/13)
Posted on: Wed, 06 Nov 2013 21:08:02 +0000
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