Is HealthCare.gov Ready?
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
The Obama Administration is assuring the nation the site is ready, but most Americans remain wary.
As the 2015 open enrollment period for healthcare under the Affordable Care Act begins, many remain skeptical it will run smoothly despite assurances from the Obama Administration. The new open enrollment period runs from November 15, 2014 through February 15, 2015.
The rollout of HealthCare.gov last year was fraught with difficulties, garnering harsh criticism from many circles, particularly Republicans who oppose Obamacare. As Health IT Outcomes reported, internal emails the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform dug up for its report on the rollout of Healthcare.gov reveal internal panic once CMS realized the launch was flawed.
With that as a backdrop, this year’s open enrollment period is coming under close scrutiny to determine whether or not the flaws have been addressed. According to The Huffington Post, the Obama Administration is assuring insurance shoppers that the website is ready to handle up to two times the number of site visitors from last year’s peak day – 125,000 concurrent users on the deadline for initial registration for Obamacare on March 31, 2014, according to the CMS.
The Obama Administration is well aware of the issues the rollout of Healthcare.gov faced last year, and is determined not to have a repeat performance. In an interview with the Huffington Post, officials said that several major technical improvements, beyond the strengthened capacity of HealthCare.gov, have been implemented to ensure a smoother experience overall.
“We're very confident we're going to be in good shape beginning Saturday,” Kevin Counihan, the man charged with running the federal government's insurance marketplaces told CBS News. Counihan was confident about the website's functionality, saying, “This is not last year. This is not last year.”
Andy Slavitt, who was recently hired by the government to oversee the relaunch of HealthCare.gov, also predicted a smoother open enrollment experience this year. “Where we are focusing in on is a successful consumer experience,” he told the Associated Press.
Counihan said, “We’ve kicked the tires on this system both internally and externally to see that it works and that it's stable.” He further explained the site has streamlined sign-up, requiring less time to complete the online process, from welcome screen through enrollment. “There are 16 screen shots to go through the application compared to 76 from a year ago.”
There were also recent concerns that the HealthCare.gov website might be vulnerable to hacking attacks, as Health IT Outcomes reported. Counihan was quick to reassure CBS that the website team has “taken an extremely aggressive and diligent view to protect the website, protect the personal information that's on this site, and that's been validated through the re-testing.”