At what point am I allowed to say healthcare.gov is a freaking nightmare

[BlueStreak]

Yeah, there have been lots of "hits" but that is because millions of us are beating our heads against the wall trying to even get logged into the system. How many people are actually getting far enough to do anything useful? Not very many.

I've tried to log on at least 50 times this week, at all hours of the day and night. Even at 2AM, the system says there are too many people on. After 24 hours of trying I finally got an account created. But I cannot log into it. It won't say why. I did all the measures suggested in "having trouble logging on". I tried to call the help number that was listed. I couldn't get through on that line for 2 days. Finally I did get through, but they don't offer any assistance whatsoever in logging on. They say chat support is available, but you can never get through to an agent that way.

I tried both the "forgot my password" and "forgot my username" links on the off chance that somehow something had gotten garbled. The "forgot my password" did send an email for password recovery. Obviously nobody ever even tested that function because the email wasn't even properly formatted for a link back. But I extracted the link and tried to go directly to the site. That link didn't work at all -- giving me an obscure error message. The "Forgot my userid" link said it sent an email, but it never did.

So I figured maybe I was just unlucky with that account. I created another account using a different email address on a completely different email system. Again, it took about 10 hours to finally get that created because the system was down most of that time. And I got exactly the same results. So I cannot log into the site to see the available plans.

OK, I called the help line again. At 1AM yesterday, I finally got somebody. He couldn't help me with my account, but he offered to enter the information online and read the screen back to me. He acted as if this is what he does all day long. What a painful process. I had to re-dictate every item about 4 times until he typed it in correctly -- didn't even know how to spell "Indiana." I was on the phone 40-50 minutes before I got the most basic information. He was able to tell me that Bronze policies for one person with no subsidies would range from $541-641 and gold would range from $846-956 -- that's more than I pay now. But I need a policy for two, and I might qualify for subsidy. I need to play with the numbers a little to see that, and I wasn't willing to stay on the phone another 2 hours with this guy. He never got to the point of looking at specific policies, and I wasn't going to have him read me the details over the phone. He had no ability to send any information to me via fax, PDF, or any other means.

What kind of nonsense is this? I am a supporter. What do you think those who are NOT supporters are thinking about this damned mess of a system?

So please tell me when it is permissible for a person to speak the truth about this screwed-up system? Am I expected to remain a blind cheerleader for another week? Another month? Indefinitely?

This system is so bad that it may accomplish what the Republicans and Faux "news" haven't been able to accomplish in three years.

[StrictlyRockers]

1. I saw some very wise person advise that you wait a week before even trying to log on

What's the huge rush? You have at the minimum a month to sign up before the program even begins to start up. Why overload the system?

[StopTheNeoCons]

2. Good post, patience is a virtue for us on this topic...nt

[Old and In the Way]

7. Me too...even though I'd like to change my policy ASAP, I can wait for the initial start-up hick-ups

to get resolved. I'd be investigating to make sure the system isn't under a DDOS attack. Have the NSA check the RNC servers for criminal activity.

[Jamastiene]

133. That was one of my thoughts as well.

With the government shut down though, I doubt they have the staff to check for that kind of thing. Or would they?

[joeglow3]

18. Works if you have time

Many people need to decide and lock into insurance provided at work. Thus, comparisons need to be done NOW. Not a month from now. Can I discuss how crappy it is?

[MrsKirkley]

35. Exactly.

[lumberjack_jeff]

62. If you have affordable insurance available at work, in general you are ineligible for the tax credit

"affordable" = 8% of agi.

*my understanding.

[bunnies]

103. You cant buy on the exchange if you have insurance through work.

Unless the cost of your work insurance is over a certain percentage of your income.

[DevonRex]

153. You can if it's s over 9-1/2 % of your income.

I just wanted that in the subject line because yours is misleading if people don't read your whole post. You know how it is, Lots of times people just read the subject. I don't mean to imply you intended to mislead. Just that after the thread gets long people actually have to click on a post or on view all to see the body of the posts.

Jesus, now I'm so worried I'm not explaining it well. I know you didn't intentionally do that. There's only so much room in the subject line. And the way you stated it is right.

[bunnies]

159. lmao!

No worries. I know exactly what you meant.

[DevonRex]

164. Oh thank goodness.

I finally just had to stop rambling on and on.

[bunnies]

166. It was very refreshing.

Rarely do I see a DUer go so far out of their way to not offend someone. That last bit especially. Pure awesome.

[B2G]

28. This is not going to be sorted out in a week

Any IT person will tell you it takes 10 times longer to fix bugs in a Production environment than a test environment.

I simply cannot believe they rushed this mess into Production.

[Yo_Mama]

41. Really - there's no way unless they didn't get the telecom lines up

If that's the problem, then there's a chance that this will work before Dec. 15th.

But most people should go the paper route now, if they really need it. It's not going to be any better next week.

I am now going just to the inscos to see options. I doubt this thing will be working by November 1st, which is what it would take to process everything.

[B2G]

45. My guess is that it's a combination of

Load issues, signficant bugs in the code and serious interfaces problems between all of the systems.

An IT nightmare to resolve.

I manage large IT projects for a living and I wouldn't touch this with a 10 foot pole, let alone put private, sensitive personal information into such a system. I can only imagine the flaws in their back end security at this point.

Sad really.

[Yo_Mama]

51. I have a similar background, and my reaction is very close to yours

I am holding some hope that maybe they can get this thing working better in November if they don't have the telecom lines, but the government traffic stats make no sense - they are clearly lying about what the source of the problem is.

[B2G]

56. Just started a thread about security concerns

I can't believe no one is considering that. I wouldn't put a bogus email address into that system right now.

[Yo_Mama]

60. I created a bogus email address to use, because I don't trust the security

But I think using the paper application process will be safer, security-wise. It's just that a huge number of people are trying to use the system to find info, and they can't get it. But they need the info before they can figure out whether they need to apply.

This is a major design flaw that should be corrected and could be corrected.

[B2G]

61. I would definitely go with paper

for the foreseeable future. Smart move.

[riderinthestorm]

154. What do you mean by going the "paper route"?

Where are you locating information about doing that?

And where are you going to see options? What is "inscos"?

Help!

[Yo_Mama]

168. I did manage to get to one person on the chat

You can send in a paper application by mail.

According to the Chat person, you cannot find info about the plans until you file an application.

However I did go to insurance company websites, and there I found info on all their Exchange-qualified plans, benefits and premiums. There was also a subsidy calculator on more than one insurance company site.

This seems to be the paper app for a single adult:
http://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Resources/Forms-Reports-and-Other-Resources/Downloads/AttachmentB_042913.pdf

That's the "short form". I think the long form was released earlier and is to be used for families, but I am not sure. However the navigators should be able to help with that.

[BlueStreak]

70. That's what I'm saying. This is not about too many people visiting the site

It is not because the site is so spectacularly successful that the first day was "a little rough". It is a freaking nightmare. The site is riddled with bugs that will not be fixed quickly. Even at 2AM, they still post the screen saying there are too many people on. And the problems aren't limited to the website. The phone bank is completely ineffective. Yes, the website problems are surely causing the phone lines to be flooded. I'll grant them that. But when you finally get to an agent, they spend an hour farting around with the system and still haven't accomplished anything for you.

We have already lost the first impression opportunity. Now there is a serious question whether it can be fixed enough soon enough to hold off the GOP onslaught to delay, delay, delay.

[Whisp]

148. I don't think they could do a beta test.

the rush is people being impatient (and I totally understand that part, the frustration factor but there Is Time ahead), I can hear the servers groan with the overload, plus it's almost a guarantee some asshole baggers and such are making dos attacks to slow things down to frustrate people even more.

[lostincalifornia]

177. Really, all indications are it is capacity issues, and those can be fixed with more hardware

I am not having the issues here in California

[BlueStreak]

37. The popint is that this screwed-up system is baking a lot of first impressions on people

Yes. I can wait. I don't actually have to do anything, as I can keep paying for my current policy. But there are millions of people out there who have been hearing how terrible Obamacare is. And the POTUS tells them to go see for themselves. And THIS is what they see.

That is messed up.

[HarveyDarkey]

169. I haven't even tried, figured at least two weeks

We've got time.

[bluestate10]

189. The problem with the system must be fixed NOW. Fuck six months, people must have a

problem free sign-up experience. If the frustration level doesn't vanish, the ACA faces failure, not because the ACA is bad but because not enough brainpower was directed to making the sign up experience problem free. The Obama Administration has known for a long time that republicans in red states were going to do everything that they could to cripple implementation of Obamacare. Yet, it is the Obama Administration itself that is at this moment doing the most damage to having people experience the enormous benefits of Obamacare.

People aren't going to readily sign up if they are experiencing hellish experiences.

[Anansi1171]

3. Your concern is noted.

Thank you and TGIF!

[BlueToTheBone]

4. Indiana? Isn't that Kasich country?

I think that the willingness of each state to implement is the reason some people are having a swimming time and other are drowning.

[ScreamingMeemie]

13. I've been saying that since Tuesday. I'm in Texas, and I wouldn't be

jokingly surprised if that were the case.

I've gotten an account, but it leads to a blank page when I log in. Or sometimes, it tells me that my log in info is wrong. And then, when I do the "I forgot my password," it tells me I answered the security questions incorrectly. We've been laughing about it here.

[uponit7771]

19. Yeap, they've made it clear from the beginning they're going to make it hard for ACA to survive

[BlueStreak]

38. Indiana did not do their own.

I hear the KY and CA systems are working fine. But the national one is a complete train wreck at this stage. And unfortunately, that is the one I have to use -- or die trying.

[bhikkhu]

86. Healthcare.gov wasn't even supposed to be needed

if the states did their job. If you want to point sleep-deprive desperate blame, that's where I'd direct it (but its still better to relax, get a good night's sleep, wait a week or two).

In Oregon we had it all set up a year ago, and the exchange site was updated regularly with information and news as it came out. Its still pretty busy, so I'm waiting a little. I'll get in touch with a local company in a week or two to get some rates for company insurance, as my boss might consider providing it for everybody. It was so far out of reach before it wasn't even an option, but it might well work now. His own family insurance has cost him 20K+ a year the last few years, including out of pocket, and he may be able to insure everybody (4 employees and families) for less than that.

[BlueStreak]

142. Agreed, but they have known for 3-1/2 years

That is plenty of time to implement a system like this. It is not a terribly complicated system. Basically you have account management, you have a database of rates, you have some selection criteria to filter the rates and calculate subsidies, and you have the actual application process. There isn't much more to it than that. I have implemented many systems for more complex than that during my 40 years building business systems.

The thing that is extraordinary is the scale, not the complexity. I would give HHS some slack on the scaling issues, considering that DoS attacks could well be part of the problem. But there is no excuse for all the functional problems. Some of this was clearly not tested in even the most superficial way.

And for all the people just looking to cheer on this parade without understanding what is actually going on, please take the time to familiarize yourself with the difference between COMPLEXITY and SCALE. They are two independent things. If one has never implemented any systems of this complexity, it would probably not be a wise idea for one to criticize this post on that basis.

[phleshdef]

79. No, Kasich is Ohio.

[BlueToTheBone]

128. Thanks.

[BlueStreak]

156. And there is another catch-22 in Indiana

My taxable income (2 adults) is under $10K a year. If I ever do get into Healthcare.gov and if I were to enter my accurate income, the system would say, "Oh, you don't belong here. You should be in Medicaid. Go see Indiana's Medicaid office."

But Indiana is not participating in the Medicaid expansion. One of the requirements for the Medicaid expansion is that the plans cannot be asset-tested. But the SCOTUS created this catch-22 that I fall into. I can't get Medicaid, but I can't buy from the exchange without or without subsidies if I enter accurate information, which is required.

So that is one reason why I need to be able to get int there. I have to do a lot of research. I may need to take money out of 401K in order to get the taxable income above the Medicaid point, and I can't do that overnight.

[ehrnst]

5. Ticketmaster is the same way at times - with way more IT staff on deck

Think about it - the busiest day, the first day it opened, they had a skeleton crew, due to Boehner's shutdown.

[OneGrassRoot]

6. I imagine it is frustrating. HOWEVER...

given how Americans spend hours and hours online (and in "real" life) waiting to get things like the latest iPhone and X-Box game -- and dealing with the various glitches involved with such things after a new release -- patience regarding obtaining healthcare should be put into perspective.

I'm going to wait before even trying.

[lonestarnot]

8. Wah wah wah. You got what you needed no?

[BlueStreak]

40. Can you read? No. I didn't get what I wanted. Not even close.

[lonestarnot]

50. So try later. Others are getting what they need. Why are you the exception. And yes I can read.

Whining doesn't excite me.

[BlueStreak]

77. Perhaps those "others" live in states that did their own exchanges

Do you understand that some states did their own and others default to the national system:

If you live in any of these states, you have to use Healthcare.gov:
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Louisiana
Maine
Michigan
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
New Hampshire
New Jersey
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Virginia
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

[lonestarnot]

82. Arizona had one store open on the opening day and it was clear the hell in Egypt.

[Yo_Mama]

47. No, and just about all the rest of us trying didn't either

And if you can possibly broaden your perspective to think of a single mother with two kids and a job trying to stay awake at 2 AM to try to get through the system, perhaps you can understand why many are worried and upset. It's one thing if we just couldn't finalize until December - but we can't even get info about plans and pricing.

I expect this weekend will be a madhouse as all the working people try again.

Small business people have been waiting for this to see their options, and I suspect many of them are just grimly sitting on the website all day, trying to get through.

[lonestarnot]

58. I don't need a lesson from you on broadening perspectives. Beginnings of things this large are

frustrating. You will get there if you remain persistent, frustrated, but persistent. I raised a kid on my own at the same time sandwiched with terminally ill parent and fighting pugs and trying to maintain full-time employment. No one said it was easy.

[BlueStreak]

80. Thank you. You said it better than I did

This is not about me. I already have a policy. I'll survive if I have to keep that policy. My concern is that this implementation is so spectacularly bad, it is putting the whole program at risk. And that will hurt a whole lot of people much less fortunate than me.

I can't believe how many people on this site these days are so much into "I've got mine. Screw everybody else." Sometimes I wonder if I stumbled into a Young Republicans convention by accident.

[Yo_Mama]

90. It's stress, not their basic natures.

But a lot of people are depending on this program, and they've waited over three years for it, so I agree there will be a backlash unless this is addressed pretty quickly.

I think it could be even if the website never works by pushing paper apps and just getting the website to give info, but I am not sure it is possible to fix anything so FUBAR in time to make it work as designed.

Maybe if the telecom lines aren't up, they can get it fixed or at least a bit more usable. The site can now handle no capacity of traffic at all - it's as if it is using standard internet traffic, which would explain a lot.

[B2G]

92. It might not be telecom related

It could be database related, code related, server related, etc.

My guess is 'all of the above'.

[Yo_Mama]

98. I know.

But I am clinging to that hope. Because if so, it can be fixed before November, although it would be awesomely incompetent not to have the lines up Oct 1st. That's so basic.

[Marrah_G]

101. That was a really nasty response

[AgingAmerican]

114. Do you know what empathy is?

Jaysus

[Jamastiene]

137. Your lack of compassion

and nastiness are duly noted.

[NealK]

181. Asshat.

[RedCappedBandit]

9. Welcome to the internet?

[jberryhill]

10. You already have health insurance

Okay, so your complaint is:

"I already have health insurance, but can't see if I'm going to get a better deal."

First off, the good news is - you have health insurance. Like me, you pay for your own and you are curious to know whether you can get a better deal.

That's fine, but maybe you won't be able to. Maybe what you are paying already is the best deal you can get. While I'm as curious as the next guy to find out whether I can get a better product at a lower rate, I certainly don't understand the point of spending all that much time on something that won't be actually available until January, even if I do find a better rate.

What, exactly, is your problem? You actually expect this thing to work flawlessly out of the box for millions of people, at a time when - just to make it fun - a whole boatload of the folks who are supposed to be making it run well have been sent home from their jobs?

[joeglow3]

22. Most companies require you to lock in your choice NOW

[jberryhill]

23. OP claimed he was paying for his own

[joeglow3]

26. Paying for it through work?

I do.

[jberryhill]

27. The full premium?

Unlikely.

If this person is paying a partial premium for insurance they already have, then again I come back to "what is the problem"?

[joeglow3]

29. My work? No. My wife's work? Yes

It is much more common at smaller companies than you think.

[jberryhill]

33. Still, if you are paying the premium for a group plan already....

...then I don't get the expectation that one would find much of a better deal through the exchange.

I'm thinking maybe the OP doesn't quite understand that the idea here is to provide a mechanism where people can buy insurance at what are basically group plan rates to which individuals have not had access previously.

If you are already paying that kind of premium, then I wouldn't expect you to necessarily find a better deal through the exchange.

[BlueStreak]

42. No. My complainet is that this mionumentlaly screwed up system may ruin all the efforts

that others have made to improve health care in this country. People on this site act like this is a done deal. it isn't. If there is a groundswell of resentment and frustration, the GOP will succeed in delaying the mandate and this will sabotage the program entirely.

[jberryhill]

74. Come back in a few weeks and see how "mionumentlaly screwed up" it is

I remember the year that so many people unboxed their new computers on Christmas that Microsoft couldn't keep up with the download demand on updates to the browser and OS.

Microsoft survived.

The insurance itself won't start until Jan 1, and what there is going to be is a lot more people with health insurance come then.

[Jamastiene]

135. There is a huge difference between insurance and a freaking Microsoft program.

You don't NEED the Microsoft program. Would it kill you to show some compassion for the ones who do NOT have health insurance and are having a hell of a time getting into the system to find any information? The OP mentioned worrying about people who do not already have an insurance plan specifically. You are acting as if they are only worried for themselves.

[jberryhill]

138. Yes, there are a number of differences

However, the system has had more traffic in two days than Southwest Airlines gets in a month.

Suggesting that things will settle down is hardly a lack of compassion.

I have compassion for everyone who runs for the exits in a building fire, but the physical constraints on the system are simply that not everyone is going to get out that door.

Fortunately, the insurance itself would not become effective until January 1. Nobody NEEDS to sign up within the first three days. Nobody.

[BlueStreak]

158. If that were the case, then 3AM would be a whole different scene

But the system is still fouled up at that hour.

And I seriously doubt your comparison with Southwest. When people say "hits" it can mean many different things. A large airline's systems will give tens of millions of quote requests every day, and each quote is a complex process. It isn't just from their own website. It is Sabre, Expedia. Priceline, Gallileo, Cheapoair, Orbitz, OneTravel, Worldspan, Travelocity, Amadeus, Kayak, and 1000 other websites that drive quote requests back to every airline. They may have to do hundreds of quotes a second and they get 99.9% of them done within 3 seconds.

In the case of Healthcare.gov, a "hit" for most people is just getting to the first screen that says you have to wait. Hardly anybody is making it through the system to do anything productive.

[NealK]

182. +1

Well said.

[AgingAmerican]

116. Stop being a Debbie Downer

The system works fine given it is new and the amount of traffic it is receiving. Whatever bugs there are will be worked out. You will just have to be patient. This is the nature of software. Doom in the form of the GOP delaying it will not come, they don't have the power to do so unless Obama hands it to them.

[HappyMe]

11. Thank you for your concern.

[Cicada]

12. Download the paper application and mail it

Took 30 minutes for me to download it, print it, fill it in and snailmail it.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

15. Mail? What is this "mail" of which you speak?

Do you need IOS8 for this mail?

[StrictlyRockers]

17. It's kind of like email, except it takes about 10,000 times as long to get there

Oh, and you have to pay half a buck for each "mail" you send.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

32. But is it susceptible to accidential deletion?

Because that's a must in my book.

[StrictlyRockers]

43. Just transpose a couple of numbers on the "ZIP CODE".

You'll be fine.

[JoePhilly]

55. Bwahaha!!!

[BlueStreak]

81. I think it is something you do with a twpewriter

Now where did I put my trusty IBM Selectric?

[Tommy_Carcetti]

84. I've actually heard of these things called "pens" as well.

I'll have to check down at the Apple Store to see what is the planned release date of them.

[BlueStreak]

88. See if the genius can figure out how to load up a fountain pen.

[grantcart]

14. I had a similar experience in the begining.

They should restrict the people that can log on by last name by day: A-C on day one and so on.

I did find that the call time dropped from 45 minutes to nothing (but once I got the operator they couldn't use their system much either).

That tells me that they could ramp up the call center volume but that the internet traffic is exponentially greater.

When you do get on line you will be asked if you want to check to see if you qualify for a subsidy, be sure to click that button.

It says you might be required to input a lot of data, but I didn't input any and my subsidy came up in a second.

I was stunned.

I certainly understand your frustration.

[AgingAmerican]

119. It's like 50 people trying to go through a single door at the same time

They have a week to get through the door, but everyone wants to be first. Eventually they will work it out.

[grantcart]

121. Fair enough but we figured out how to line up strangers to get into an airplane without

everyone rushing though the door.

They could do the same today and the problem would be solved tomorrow, restrict sign up each day by some arbitrary means, like assigning certain letters to certain dates.

This one thing is causing a lot of the problem and by reducing the number of people trying to log on they would get people through the door much faster.

[liberal_at_heart]

16. from what I've seen of the responses you're not allowed to say it's a nightmare.

Unless you only have glowing admiration you get pounced on. Personally, I'm waiting a while and then I'm contacting my insurance broker. She has always helped guide me through whatever insurance application I have to go through. It's a big help.

[uponit7771]

21. Or wingerish out of proportion criticism could be a reason such post gets attention?

[Fla Dem]

20. There's no rush to sign up the first week or even the first month. You're not going to win

a toaster if you're among the first 1000 people to sign up.

I've worked for large corporations and I've never seen them introduce/implement a massive program without experiencing minor as well as major glitches. They'll work it out.


You have until 12/15/13 to sign up. Here's a good breakdown of the important dates going forward.

Dec. 15, 2013—This is the date you need to enroll for insurance on the exchange and pay your first premium in order for your health coverage to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2014. After Dec. 15, you still can enroll, but your start date for coverage will be delayed by between two and six weeks, depending on what day of the month you enroll.

Jan. 1, 2014—Insurance coverage from plans sold on the health exchanges begin. Most people who don't have insurance coverage by this date will face a tax penalty of $95 for individual adults or 1 percent of their income, whichever is higher.

March 31, 2014—The end of open enrollment on the exchanges. After that, you can only enroll in the exchange's insurance if you have a so-called qualifying life event, such as losing your job, having a child or getting divorced.

Oct. 15, 2014—Open enrollment on the health exchanges for coverage in 2015 begins. In future years, Oct. 15 also will be the opening of enrollment for coverage.

Dec. 7, 2014—Open enrollment for 2015 coverage closes. In future years, Dec. 7 also will be the closing date for enrollment.

Jan. 1, 2015—You must have coverage for the year by this date or pay a penalty of $325 for individual adults or 2 percent of income, whichever is higher.

Jan. 1, 2015—Employers with 50 or more full-time workers must offer affordable, comprehensive insurance by this date or face penalties of $2,000 per employee.

Jan. 1, 2016—Penalty for adults not having health insurance jumps to $695, or 2.5 percent of income, whichever is highest.

Jan. 1, 2018—The so-called Cadillac tax on health plans kicks in. Insurers or self-funded plans must pay a 40 percent excise tax on plans that cost more than $10,200 annually for individuals and $27,500 for families.


http://www.cnbc.com/id/101065523

[joeglow3]

25. I have to decide on my insurance at work by Oct. 15th

Thus, all those other dates are rendered meaningless.

[Fla Dem]

36. Your employer is giving you a choice between their plan and the ACA? nt

[joeglow3]

53. My employer doesn't require me to buy insurance through them.

Yours does?

[Fla Dem]

63. My employer provides a group health plan, which I pay for at a reduced rate.

It's good insurance and comparable to what would be available on the ACA. I took from your initial response that your employer was offering a voluntary health plan, but only giving you until 10/15 to opt in. Otherwise you would need to get health care coverage through the ACA.

[BlueStreak]

46. This is not about me. It is about the millions who are getting their first real impression

of Obamacare right now, and it ain't pretty.

[Cali_Democrat]

59. Concern noted. n/t

[BlueStreak]

83. Trollishness noted. n/t

[Cali_Democrat]

107. At least we agree that your OP was trollish.

I'm happy so many people on this thread are giving you hell.

You deserve it.

[bowens43]

24. give it some time. it's only been 3 days. This is a monumental undertaking.

[MrsKirkley]

30. I can't log on either.

I keep getting a message that says my id and password are incorrect. Until I read your post, I thought maybe the system somehow screwed up my account and I needed to create another one. If creating another account didn't work for you, it probably won't work for me either. I don't mind waiting my turn for the log in screen to appear. It's getting the error message after waiting all that time that upsets me. At least when waiting in a long line at a store, one eventually gets to the register. Four days later and the healthcare.gov website is still worse than Black Friday!

[BlueStreak]

48. Thank you. It is good to know I'm not the only one having that problem

[Sissyk]

31. BlueStreak,

did you read grantcart's experience posted here yesterday?

This is a time to have a little patience. You'll get there!

[BlueStreak]

143. I did not see that. Do you have a link?

[Barack_America]

34. Congrats on your healthy income...if $541/mo is no more than 9.5% of it...

As for the plans themselves, you might want to wait until you can compare copays and deductibles before declaring them "worse" than your current plan.

Be thankful you're not a family with employer-supplied insurance. There's no cap on how much we can pay for our insurance. 25% of our income? Fine by the ACA.

[MrsKirkley]

52. Eligibility for health insurance subsides should be based on income alone

Last edited Fri Oct 4, 2013, 11:02 AM - Edit history (1)

not access to crappy employer based policies. Many retail workers are paying for family health insurance they can't afford to use because their employers won't subsidize deductibles. These people need subsidies too and don't deserve to be left out.

[Yo_Mama]

95. Yeah, tons

And not just retail - I know of engineers and techs and managers and so forth who have those same policies.

The whole point of ACA was to not just get people insured, but get them insured with access to health care. Well, we all knew it wasn't perfect, but nothing is. However now it looks to be a struggle just to get people able to sign up, and if something doesn't happen by Oct 15th there is going to be a lot of very angry people.

Because other posters are right - the business deadlines are right on top of us, and the situation is highly complicated for spouses that may be getting insurance for themselves and the children as well through their spouse's employer, but now those rates are often changing.

Small businesses are scrambling, trying to figure out their options and what to do with their employees.

[whttevrr]

39. If by nightmare you mean...

People are saving thousands of dollars; republicans are signing up for it and speaking in support of it; and people with pre-existing conditions can finally buy insurance that they could not buy at any price...

Uhm... What?



Hold on, let me get some coffee and a donut

I have been on an emotional jag for days. Every time I read about people in their 50's saving thousands of dollars on insurance I get a little misty eyed. The story about the woman with diabetes and making somewhere between 20-25K, paying an amazingly affordable premium for insurance was compelling. The children who have health issues that would break most adults hearts are now getting insurance... never has the idea of 'nightmare' entered my mind.

Except, when it comes to the realization that Republican foes of 'Obama Cares' being found out as cruel, unconscionable liars... yeah, that might be a nightmare for them...

But, uhm, no... don't see it.

[NCTraveler]

44. Seems to me that you are allowed to say it,

and you did.

[BlueStreak]

64. Two days ago I posted the first half of this ordeal

and my post was banned, even though it didn't come close to violating any TOU. The sin was simply saying the way things are and a whole lot of people don't want to hear that. So yes, I am encouraged that at least a few people are starting to wake up to the reality. This is a serious problem that has the potential of undermining the entire Obamacare program. Brushing it under the carpet doesn't help us.

[NCTraveler]

130. Do you have a link to the first half? nt.

[BlueStreak]

147. It is hidden

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=3764733


The original text is quoted below in its entirety. If anybody can find a TOU violation in any of that, I'd certainly like to know what it is.

1) the quality of the rollout reflects directly on every one of us who has supported this administration in this activity. To have such a spectacularly bad rollout is just feeding the right wing noise machine.

2) I want information about my options under Obamacare so that I can speak from a position of facts to anybody who is attacking this new system.

3) the teabaggers have made their argument that we should delay all this by a year. If the first day's meltdown is any indication, maybe they are right about that.

Time is an important factor.

[NCTraveler]

149. Thank you for the link.

Without having read the alerters comments, I would not have voted to hide your post. The title of this op makes more sense after seeing your hidden post.

[BlueStreak]

155. None of them made any effort to explain how it violated TOU

because it didn't, of course. I never vote to hide anything without explaining my reasoning. I figure that is the least I owe the person being judged. And guess what ... sometimes when writing that explanation, I realize there is no justification for hiding and I change my mind at that point. People voting to hide without explanations are cowards or at least thoughtless, IMHO.

Juror #1 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given
Juror #2 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given
Juror #3 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE and said: No explanation given
Juror #4 voted to HIDE IT and said: ackety. Can we say that? Snort.
Juror #5 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given
Juror #6 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given

[jberryhill]

140. Okay then, what do you propose?

Obviously, the system is getting a huge inrush of traffic.

One would assume, that if all relevant personnel aren't sitting around with their fingers up their butts because of the shutdown, that they are seeking to address capacity issues.

So, in the meantime, what is it that you propose we do?

[BlueStreak]

150. If I were doing it

It would have actually been tested if I were doing it. And if I were doing it, it would have been well recognized that 95% or more of the traffic is people wanting to do research, not to actually enter an application. I would have provided a lightweight path for the 95% information-seekers, and because that is read-only with no accounts required and because the database is essentially static (the plans don't change until the next open enrollment period), it can be scaled virtually infinitely. That is how a competent IT professional would have done this. But that didn't happen, so here's what I would do if I were pulled into service as a crisis manager:

1) Let the President know how screwed up it is so he has an opportunity to frame his pitches in a more appropriate way. Encourage the President to acknowledge the problems openly and set national expectations for when a workable system would be available, and clarify that states with their own exchanges are not affected. That's a bit of humble pie, but it is much better to acknowledge the problems and reset expectations than to run around in denial as the majority here are doing.

2) I would immediately put up an entry page that splits off users who have company-provided policies, users who are on Medicare already, users who are on Medicaid already, and users in states with their own exchanges, sending them to their exchanges or to an appropriate information page that explains why they don't need to go into this site at all. I would hook that into IP lookups to further discourage people in state-run exchanges from using this site. That could be done in 8 hours and can be completely disconnected from the main site servers. I'd look at putting that on a highly scalable resource like the Amazon cloud.

3) I would consider ways of structuring the traffic so that people would have a reasonable expectation of when they could access the system, without allowing everyone to do it at the same time. For example, anybody could access from 2AM-7AM eastern time. But during the rest of the day, people 20-35 could have Monday, 36-50, could have Tuesday, 51-64 could have Wednesday and so on.

4) I would stop all entry of applications by the phone bankers. This takes them an hour per client and that is too long. Those people need to be 100% focused on helping people access the online system right now. That is the only way to handle the crush of demand. They could simply advise clients that phone application support will begin October 25 of whatever.

On the IT side, there are undoubtedly many things that could be done, but I would have to see the exact system architecture to determine that. 2 days with their top analysts and we would have a plan that was doable and had a high probability of success. I have done this before multiple times on systems of comparable complexity. It is difficult, but you have to do it.

[chill_wind]

191. Lots of good ideas.

I have no background in IT like yours, but those are things that make sense to even some completely uninitiated soul like me. Maybe the amount off off-line time they are projecting over the weekend means they may be doing some major retooling and in fact implementing some of the above. Here's earnestly hoping.

[BlueStreak]

199. Yes. It is an encouraging sign.

You have to dig in and go after these messes aggressively. You cannot sit back and just hope. I did EXACTLY this kind of work for 15 years working for one of the largest mainframe companies. I never worked on a system that had this much public scrutiny, but I worked on lots of systems that were far more complex. And there was never one we did not turn around.

Einstein said "We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them."

Let's hope the HHS has reached out to find some capable people to clean up this mess and is not relying on the same ones who created the mess.

[Cali_Democrat]

49. No, you're not allowed to say anything about it

[Autumn Colors]

54. Can't everyone start at their STATE gov website?

Last edited Fri Oct 4, 2013, 11:22 AM - Edit history (3)

I never even went to healthcare.gov. I started at my STATE government website (www.ct.gov) and then clicked on the button on the left side that says ACCESS HEALTH CT.

I registered and did the application process this morning with no problem. The only thing I'll have to go back and do is that I need to submit a profit/loss statement for Jan-Sep of this year and then a statement of estimated income for the rest of this year since I'm self-employed (a medical transcriptionist) with income that changes every year.

The good news? Looks like I'll be getting enough of a subsidy so I can get a Silver level plan through our state's newly formed nonprofit healthcare co-op for $85 per month and the co-pays are very, very low, ZERO deductible, and maximum out-of-pocket amount per year is $2,000. As an over-50 female who had to drop insurance several years ago due to cost, I'm THRILLED.

Most of the specialists I've either visited as a patient or transcribed for are already on the "in-network" physician list. The website says more doctors will be added as they join and even says that if your doctor isn't on there, to give them the URL so they can check it out and join the network.

So, I would say that if you can, try to bypass the federal government website and go straight to your state's website. It might be quicker.

[BlueStreak]

65. Only if you live in a state that did its own exchange. Most of the nation has to use Healthcare.gov

That's the issue. The majority of people who are taking a look are getting a horrible first impression.

[Autumn Colors]

67. Oh, I thought all states did an exchange

That sucks. Sorry.

[whttevrr]

68. This!

These stories just fucking 'wow' me... There is so much good in this program that it defies reason that some will call it a nightmare. The nightmare was what our Insurance Companies were allowed to do for so long. The nightmare is living without insurance and fearing getting sick every day. That's a nightmare. The nightmare is going bankrupt because a loved one gets sick.

Thank you for sharing your story.

My own is not so dreamy, I am a slacker from way back when who lucked into a job where my insurance costs me about 80 bucks a month. And, if my company did not give me insurance, I make too much to qualify for any subsidy. I got no skin in this game, personally...

Except... It fucking breaks my heart when I hear of the horror stories that people go through without access to affordable healthcare. That's the nightmare. The Affordable Care Act really does seem to end the nightmare for many millions of my fellow Americans.

[BlueStreak]

76. If you are saying you can go into a state site, that is simply incorrect

If you live in one of the 36 states that is part of the national exchange, as I do, you have no option. You MUST use the national site. There is no state exchange in these states.

I'm truly happy for those who live in places like California and Kentucky where they have implemented their own exchanges, and apparently did a good job of it. That's terrific. But most of the states are experiencing a real nightmare right now and I'm not seeing anything that makes me believe it is going to be solved in a week, a month, or maybe not even by the end of the open enrollment period.

[whttevrr]

85. Sometimes cognitive dissonance is not a catch phrase.

By phone

We’re available 24/7

1-800-318-2596

TTY: 1-855-889-4325

[grantcart]

117. Not every state has a site and when you try to log on the national one

you will get a page that tells you are in line to log on.

It could take hours for you to get the log on page.

When you try to log on it frequently freezes.

If you call it could take 45 minutes before they answer and they will tell you to try again tomorrow.

They cannot help you because their access to the site is also frozen.

They will mail you an application, in three weeks.

The problems getting on are not understated, I did it but at 3 am.

This could be solved if they restricted log on by last name by certain days, First Day A-C, and so on.

[whttevrr]

120. Or if they kept people with insurance they can afford from logging in 50 times in the last few days.

ya know?

[grantcart]

123. Except that even if you have insurance you can afford you should check to see what subsidy you

could get or what additional benefits you might get, like a much lower maximum.

So I understand why everyone wants to see, they just need to set up a queue

[chill_wind]

198. Thank you, grantcart

for being objective and fair to the facts as observed by the OP. I don't have insurance at this time and what the OP has been encountering is representative of what lots of us have been encountering and reporting.

Encouraged that you had some success in the off-peak the other night, I was one of many no doubt that tried in those same hrs last nite,as well as some other various times, and still had no luck. As you say, the problems getting on and getting the process to work to completion are not being overstated by any stretch.

You had your personal reasons for being eager and motivated to try get this done "now rather than later" and neither you nor anyone else should have to justify your desire to want do so in your own preferred time frame or to be chastised for persistently trying, given there have been anecdotes of random success. Thanks for taking a kind helpful tone and I agree that staggering the registration, if nothing else at the moment, sounds like one great idea.

[Autumn Colors]

93. It might lessen some of the traffic to healthcare.gov

I hope those states who DO have exchanges will publicize their website address enough that people from those states will bypass healthcare.gov. That might help ease up the traffic ... along with waiting a few days or a week or two ... or using the site during off hours.

Coverage isn't going to start for three months anyway so I was in no rush, but decided to give it a try this morning and was pleasantly surprised.

[Autumn Colors]

102. A correction

Just to be sure, I went back to see what the specifics were and what I'm getting is AMAZING!

Premium: $85 per month
Co-pays: $0 for preventative care, $5 for PCP (for injury), $15 for specialist, $75 for ER
Deductible: ZERO (yes, that's right ... ZERO)
Maximum out-of-pocket amount per year: $2,000

There's a really wonderful nonprofit community health center in the town I used to live in that I went to once. It's about 15 miles from where I live now. One of their doctors is accepting new patients and they're in-network, so I'll probably pick her as a PCP. I haven't had a PCP in many years. This center also offers low-cost dental services. Since they're nonprofit, I'll check that out as well, even though dental isn't part of the ACA plan.

I'm completely blown away by this.

EDIT: Sadly, the reason my business is doing so badly now is also because of ACA which mandates that medical providers/hospitals switch over to electronic medical records by next year, and the government provided generous grants to help practices do this (including some of my customers). So, I've also personally suffered from ACA -- loss of about 75% of my income in the span of a few months -- but that would have happened eventually as the new technology was implemented anyway. This makes the pain a bit better.

[whttevrr]

105. Thank you for repeating your story!

It is sad about the business aspect but great that the "Insurance Thing" is "AMAZING!" for you.

[grantcart]

122. Pleased post as an OP, great story.

[Autumn Colors]

125. OK, I will -- later today

Last edited Fri Oct 11, 2013, 01:44 PM - Edit history (2)

I did add the specifics as a response to your post that's on the front page right now.

EDIT: I'll do this after I'm officially enrolled. I still need to get a stack of paperwork to them regarding my income for this year and an estimate for next year, since I'm self-employed. Will have to wait until I file my state sales tax return for the third quarter (so I can include that) and mail it all in by postal mail.

[MrsKirkley]

127. What awesome insurance! Sorry about your business.

[Jamastiene]

139. No, it doesn't work that way.

Depending on which state you live in, healthcare.gov is the place you are supposed to go. I know for North Carolina, it said I was supposed to use healthcare.gov

[bhikkhu]

57. Maybe relax a little about it, especially if you're already covered

My family hasn't had insurance for 10 years and I'm waiting for a couple of weeks to try to get set up. None of the coverage changes will set in until January 1 anyway.

Problems arise when millions of people try to log in hundreds of times each in the first few days, but there's no real need to be in an urgent hurry or lose sleep about it at this point. Grantcart's idea about portioning days for setup based on the first letter of the last name would have been a good one to spread things out, but that would have had to be sorted out weeks ago...

[BlueStreak]

66. This is not about me. Please. It is about the success of the Obamacare program.

This implementation is so bad that I believe it is putting the whole program seriously at risk. it plays right into the GOP strategy to try to delay it long enough to take over the Senate in 2014, and the WH in 2016.

If the GOP were smart, they would be telling everybody in Healthcare.gov exchange states to go try to enroll right now.

[whttevrr]

75. Not likely...

People are staying online, on the phone, or going to healthcare centers. Democrats, Republicans, and Independents or whatevers, are lining up for this. people want this and they know that Republicans want to take it away.

People go through hell to get this and they are going to make sure they get it.

Why do you think the site is so busy?

Because people everywhere want this and they will jump through whatever hoops are necessary to make sure they get it.

Relax. Take a breath. And watch. This will work.

[Bigmack]

69. Tinfoil hat...? I don't think so....

If the Koch bros and the rest of the organized fascists haven't hired goons to jam the websites, phone lines, and whatever, it would be the first time they've missed a chance to astroturf and monkey-wrench.

[B2G]

72. I give up.

It's a DOS attack. The system would be running flawlessly otherwise.

[BlueStreak]

87. There could be an element of D-O-S, but that's not the main problem

The problems at healthcare.gov run wide and deep. And if they did not anticipate DOS attacks, shame on them. DOS attacks are manageable with the proper preparations and tools.

I'm not saying this is a trivial problem. Building this system was clearly a big undertaking. But that doesn't change the fact that it is in full meltdown mode at this point.

The question is not whether it is screwed up. It is. That's beyond any doubt.

The question is whether the same staff that built this thing can save it before the GOP is able to deal a knockout punch.

[B2G]

89. And I'm beginning to have serious doubts that they can

I really wonder. Did all of the developers, testers, architects sign off on this as production ready? Or were they mandated to roll it out in spite of objections?

If they signed off, we are in a world of hurt, because that will make fixing it that much harder. They thought it was ready for prime time in that case and didn't forsee all of these problems.

Actually, the other scenario isn't that much better...

[anneboleyn]

134. I wonder if something along these lines is taking place...

Considering the lengths these types are willing to go to in order to damage President Obama in any way I would not be at all surprised if the website is being targeted so the repubs can say "the ACA is horrible! The website doesn't work! Nobody can log on!" Etc.

[Lex]

71. I'm not even going to try to log on until 2 or 3 weeks have elapsed.

But I always try to avoid the first crush on openings of things.

[JCMach1]

78. It's like going to the biggest hit movie on the first few days

don't do it unless you want to wait in line and put-up with the hassle. You have until March. CHILL

[think_critically]

91. it should be no surprise

This is a HUGE software challenge so this should be expected. As for the administration, remember, they were originally supposed to work with states but since we have a bunch of sorry ass republican governors who don't give a flying fuck about poor people, the government had to create exchanges for most of the country and they had to do this within the span of a year and a half. This is huge undertaking but I get the frustration but I work in IT as a software developer and I can tell you that you can do all of the automated and human testing but nothing can prepare you for the problems that arise when the application is in production. I'd recommend holding off for a month or so so that the kinks can be worked out if you can. Good luck.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

94. "I've tried to log on at least 50 times this week" ... You are part of the problem yet

you choose to fucking whine about it?

You have weeks and weeks to enroll... WAIT A FEW FUCKING DAYS FOR GOD'S SAKE!

What the hell is so hard about that?

[whttevrr]

96. Correction: Doesn't need to log on.

Has Insurance, and is gumming up the works for those who don't have insurance.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

99. Yea, I couldn't read anything past the line I quoted. Some people, gah! n/t

[whttevrr]

106. Right?

From the OP of this thread:

"This is not about me. I already have a policy. I'll survive if I have to keep that policy."

This is really about the millions of Americans who will not survive without any Insurance.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

108. Doesn't even need ACA yet gumming up the works! Shame! n/t

[BlueStreak]

141. O right. Now I am the one that messed up this system. Just brilliant.

Look, I have the same right to find out about my options as anybody else. You don't know my circumstances.

You are the one who should be ashamed, being so judgmental when you don't even know what you are talking about.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

145. Despite your circumstances, you know the system is bogged down yet

instead of waiting a few days or a couple of weeks for the traffic to die down you instead do this: "I've tried to log on at least 50 times this week", contributing to jamming the website and then complaining about it.

I certainly did not say you don't have the same right as everyone else. But if you know what is happening to that website and contribute to that problem anyway, then patience and restraint in your criticism is in order, not complaining about a problem to which you are contributing.

[Skip Intro]

165. That's bs. Your line of thinking leads us to the ultimate conclusion that

the site works just fine if you don't try to use it.

Wtf?

They had two years to prepare this. They told everyone to go to the site. Visit their fb page, it says, go to the site right at the top. It isn't the customer's fault because the store isn't ready for business.

Ridiculous.

[Pretzel_Warrior]

97. I'm going to wait 2 weeks before trying

It's not like you have to be done in one month, two months or 3 months. If you want insurance starting Jan 1st you probably have to be enrolled by mid December, but as far as requiring insurance via mandate you have 6 months.

[quinnox]

100. K&R, sounds like a horror show

Sounds like a very bad first impression is being made here, you aren't the first horror story I have seen about this. Thanks for relating an honest experience.

[B2G]

111. It was easier getting a Furby in 1998 n/t

[Iggo]

104. Why do you think you're not allowed to say that?

[whttevrr]

109. hyperbole?

[Iggo]

110. Sorry. Sounded like whining from here.

My bad.

[Raffi Ella]

115. right?

I didn't even read the sob story since she chose a strawman for the title.

[AgingAmerican]

112. That's the reality of software

It's a big country and millions of people need healthcare. Eventually it will calm down and the bugs will be worked out. It isn't as if we all need it today, doesn't kick in til Jan 1st. Just Caaaaaalm down!

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

113. you have 6 months to enroll and

another 80 some days before coverage kicks in. Take a deep breath and relax. This is an undertaking on a massive scale and there will be some problems but none are impossible to fix. Please, I understand it can be frustrating, but lets not throw the baby out with the bathwater............

[TroglodyteScholar]

118. This massive undertaking wasn't perfect in its first week??

What a shock! Guess all that effort was for nothing.

[Orsino]

124. You're needing quick results from a brand-new system...

...and brand-new employees during the first week. I'm not going to tell you that it's not a nightmare; that was preordained. I can guarantee that the system will get better, and I can only say I'm sorry we weren't doing something like this decades ago.

This is new ground being broken, and the folks who need it most are unfortunately the guinea pigs. I wish we all could just sign up for Medicare and be done.

Edit: to sound less like I'm busting on the OP.

[pnwmom]

126. Why the rush? Nothing will kick in before Jan 1, and for that

we have till Dec. 15 to apply.

[Evasporque]

129. All the top IT talent is hired by the GOP to rig elections....nt

[AtomicKitten]

131. With the magnitude of this undertaking,

I think a little patience is in order.

[Jamastiene]

132. You got a lot further than I did.

I couldn't even get an account created, because it told me my first name, last name, and email were not unique. I have no clue what that even means. It doesn't get any more unique than my name and email.

I finally decided that it would be best to wait a couple weeks instead of getting so frustrated. That kind of stress can't be good for a person's health. If it is still bad in a couple weeks after the initial rush of people clogging the system has died off, then I'm going to complain big time. I don't know who I am going to complain to (anybody who will listen probably), but I will complain then.

Look at the bright side, isn't there supposed to be some kind of thing written into the law to keep you from catastrophic bankruptcy if the stress of trying to get through that damned frustrating web site finally makes you either pop a blood vessel or smash your head on the keyboard too hard out of frustration to continue?

Joking aside, don't stress over it. Wait a couple weeks, then try again. Maybe, they will have these hideous errors worked out by then. If they do not, look for the woman with Y A W E T A G and a cow symbol on her forehead sitting there crying in the emergency room. That will be me.

[NealK]

184. "I don't know who I am going to complain to"

All you have to do to complain is to go to healthcare.gov.

[Nye Bevan]

136. Trying to get hold of the newest iPhone a couple of days after it is first released

is a bit of a nightmare too. But that is not because it is not a good product.

[DireStrike]

144. It is unfortunate that there wasn't a media campaign instructing people to WAIT

Coverage doesn't begin until January even if you get signed up right now.

Just give it up for a week or two.

[BlueStreak]

152. I doubt Obama is even aware how messed up it is. He needs to be.

He could help a lot by encouraging the majority of people to wait. A simple statement like this would help:

"As you know, this new system is trying to get affordable insurance to 40 million who either don't have insurance or can barely afford the insurance they have. This is so important to most Americans that we are having a great deal of difficulty providing service during the initial rollout. We anticipated this. That is why for the first year we have a 6-month open enrollment period. So I ask my fellow Americans to help, If you are covered by Medicare or Medicaid already, you don't need to do anything. If you are covered by insurance from your place of employment or your spouse's employer and you are happy with that insurance, you don't need to do anything. Please stay off the Healthcare.gov site so that those without insurance can enroll.

' If you pay for your own insurance and have a policy in force, I know you will want to go to the exchange to calculate how much assistance you qualify for. Please help your fellow citizens by waiting until December 1 to do this. That will still give you two weeks to make your application and still get those benefits on January 1, 2014.

'Finally, if you do not have insurance at all, you are the top priority. we want you to come enroll now. This is why I am asking your neighbors who have insurance to please wait so that you can have the first access to the system."

That would be helpful and constructive. it would also be a strong political message.

[steve2470]

157. I'm sure he's well aware of it

May I give you some kind non-snarky advice ? Write PBO an old fashioned snail mail letter:

Write a letter to the President
Here are a few simple things you can do to make sure your message gets to the White House as quickly as possible.

1. If possible, email us! This is the fastest way to get your message to President Obama.

2. If you write a letter, please consider typing it on an 8 1/2 by 11 inch sheet of paper. If you hand-write your letter, please consider using pen and writing as neatly as possible.

3. Please include your return address on your letter as well as your envelope. If you have an email address, please consider including that as well.

4. And finally, be sure to include the full address of the White House to make sure your message gets to us as quickly and directly as possible:

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/write-or-call#write

I would be as calm and rational as possible. He might just read it. I've read that he deliberately reads something like 10 letters a day, maybe including emails and WH.gov submissions. Granted, those letters/emails/web submissions are vetted by his staff. I'm very sure that the super angry, super irrational communications don't usually make his reading list.

I wrote that horrible guy GWB one time about an outrage on my phone bill. Granted, GWB was a pretty evil guy but he was still the President in charge of the FCC. I got no satisfaction from the White House or FCC, but my complaint got forwarded to the Public Service Commission in Florida (which was then under Jeb Bush his brother). Someone from the PSC personally called me at home and explained WHY I could get no justice, because of the way federal and state laws were written. I was very impressed. Is GWB still an evil asshole who deserves to die in The Hague ? Sure. But I wrote a calm, detailed snail mail letter detailing my concerns. I got something in return.

Try it, with all due respect and kindness. I don't think you will regret it.

[BlueStreak]

161. Thank you for the non-snarky advice. It is most welcome.

I will do that.

But I want to assure the President that I retired a second time from IT 15 months ago, and I'm not going back into active duty a third time.

[steve2470]

163. I empathize with your frustration, I truly do

I registered on http://www.healthcare.gov a few weeks in advance and created my account. I was lucky and got everything done at 3 AM the first night. I was lucky. Seems like millions aren't so lucky.

[DireStrike]

167. That would be good, yeah.

I do worry about tea partiers responding to such a message by logging in en masse, though.

[Jamastiene]

172. In this article, they seem to indicate that President Obama is aware.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/feds-set-repairs-glitchy-health-care-website-20477118

[BlueStreak]

173. Amazing. ABC reads the future :)

The article is dated TOMORROW.

It is good to see at least some acknowledgment of the problems. They need to own this and communicate very clearly their plans for progress.

Notice Cantor's statement

"Americans have seen once again that Obamacare is not ready for prime time," Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the No. 2 House Republican, said in a statement. "A dysfunctional website is the least of that law's problems."

The Obama administration will lose the PR battle on this if they are not a lot more open about their plans and solutions. This is a good first step. People will be patient, but they need to know what they are facing.

[Jamastiene]

174. One of the most important things the article mentions is

that this weekend many functions of the healthcare.gov web site will not be working/accessible. That is important information for people to know. No one likes to feel like their time is being wasted and if they do not know this news ahead of time, they will be wasting their time this weekend, for the most part. Best try again after this weekend.

On edit: And about the date on the article. I noticed it too but did not know quite what to think about it.

[BlueStreak]

175. Indeed. I'll take the weekend off. But I wouldn't have gotten on at all if

not for our President talking that up. He's a pretty aware guy. I loved his references to the Apple OS and to Kayak this week. Can you imagine any Bush or any Romney making any of those references.

"Why, I had one of my servants try to charter a jumbojet for a little weekend escape. He tried to book that on Kayak, and can you believe they don't even manage private charters of jumbo jets? Or yachts either? How is a person supposed to use a that Internet thing to travel anyway? Preposterous!"

I expect Obama will be out with the right messaging next week. #1 Own the problems. #2 Be realistic about the solutions. And then #3 sell the big picture. You have to do all three or else you leave the GOP with a huge target on your chest.

[steve2470]

151. Even Blizzard Entertainment couldn't handle this, and DDOS attacks

I think HHS is doing well all things considered. I think we need to be patient and keep trying. December 15th is the cutoff for January 1st coverage.

[StandingInLeftField]

160. This is an unbelievable mess.

And I'm not afraid to say so.

[Skip Intro]

162. It's a cluster**** and there's no excuse for it.

It isn't like they couldn't have imagined a flood of people to the site. It isn't like other sites don't handle hundreds of times the traffic. The fed exchange was reported to have had 2.8 mil hits on Monday. Google, Amazon, Ebay, plenty of sites handle that much traffic in an hour.

But that was day one. This is day 4! Still. Server down. System down. I've seen error messages I didn't even know existed. No excuse for it.

[bluestate10]

170. I am lucky enough to live in a Blue State that has it's own exchange and has worked it hard.

Healthcare.gov serves states where the governors and legislatures tried to either prevent implementation of the ACA, or dragged their feet. The system is being hit by enormous demand, I have never seen a system that tolerates that without breaking down. Your state's governor fought the ACA like a banshee and did nothing to help his state's citizens be prepared for the ACA launch.

[Jamastiene]

171. More information at link:

Feds Set Repairs on Glitchy Health Care Website
WASHINGTON October 5, 2013 (AP)
By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR Associated Press
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Associated Press

The Obama administration says it's planning fixes to the glitch-prone federal website that uninsured people can use to sign for coverage under the new health care law.

Officials said late Friday that the application functions of healthcare.gov will be unavailable during off-peak hours this weekend for repairs.

Technology problems overwhelmed the launch of new health insurance markets last Tuesday.

The federal site, which serves 36 states, drew millions of users. But many consumers were unable to get on the site and others encountered glitches that prevented them from successfully completing their applications.

<snip>

More at link:
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/feds-set-repairs-glitchy-health-care-website-20477118

Don't let anyone tell you what you experienced did not happen, because it is happening to a lot of us and apparently a lot more as well, according to the story above.

[kelliekat44]

197. And don't let anyone tell you that these glitches were unexpected. Any roll out of a new system ha

glitches and sometimes even manual systems don't work at first. If you wait until next month you will still have plenty of time and more info will be available. I never bought new versions of any Microsoft software until the problems were worked out in subsequent versions AND remember, you paid upfront for Microsoft products, glitches and all.

[lostincalifornia]

176. Not having that in California. Why not wait a couple weeks and then try it.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

178. Wait. There's plenty of time.

The coverage isn't available until January 1 anyhow, so give it a few weeks for the dust to settle and try it again.

[Warpy]

179. The traffic is far beyond what anyone anticipated

probably because of all the free publicity the tantruming teabaggers gave it.

If you can say that three months from now, you'll have a point.

However, remember Medicare was a clusterfuck when it started. Only careful amending of it made it into the program that works so well today.

The ACA is going to need a lot more amending than Medicare did.

[Lucinda]

180. I can't think of a single big tech rollout that wasn't buggy.

I am sorry that you had so much trouble though, and I do get your points. If people aren't regular computer users who upgrade their tech, they may be very frustrated. But it's such a blessing for those who are getting through...

[Myrina]

183. Exact same thing happened to me.

So now I have 2 accounts that have been "validated" but that I can't log onto & I'm out of email addresses to sign up again.

[bluestate10]

186. That is unacceptable, completely unacceptable. nt

[kelliekat44]

195. Delete and start over again. This happens with a lot of sites...even Amazon. nt

[Myrina]

202. I can't delete & start over - it doesn't recognize

... The email addresses it just sent me confirmation emails to validate. I get an error saying "user does not exist"

[chill_wind]

201. There are probably a million of those unusable accounts piled up by now.

as people keep returning to try again. I encountered the same issues- except I never got any further than the empty confirmation email. I wonder if starting completely over by emptying cache, deleting cookies and prior sessions would let people start "clean" again, once the system is working better, although I'm not sure how much if anything is getting written and saved to the servers in the first place as things are behaving now. I'm not advising, because I really don't know, but just wondering.

[bluestate10]

185. I went to my state's exchange and navigated the site. Worked beautifully.

BUT. I live in the only state that already implemented health care reform and 98.5% of the people in my state are insured.

Problems with the national exchange are fucking inexcusable. The Obama Administration KNEW that red state republicans were going to do everything they could to prevent people from signing up. Every problem with the exchange helps the cause of those republicans. The damned problem must be fixed TODAY. People that try to sign up on Sunday should fly through the system, getting all the information that they need.

Obamacare is good. I saw that from the look through my state's exchange. The rate that I will pay on my health insurance will drop by $150-$250 dollars upon renewal on rates. Deductibles on the new policies are lower, so is the maximum out of pocket amount. The number of gold level plans went from 6 to 17, the number of silver level plans tripled, platinum level plans showed up at enticing prices. Consumers in my well insured state are looking at big savings on health care costs, better than even the good rates that existed.

[H2O Man]

187. gosh

[The Midway Rebel]

188. You had my permission at 9:39 A.M. October 4, 2013.

You are welcome!

[tnlefty]

190. Please, please try to calm down.

Unless i was dreaming two mornings ago I saw an interview with one of the navigators. The system is overwhelmed, and she reccommended trying to call in and they would begin the process for you: 1-800-318-2596.

I know a woman who is a navigator in my state, a state that tried to shut the navigators down. Please keep trying and good luck to you.

[jazzimov]

192. Well, CERTAINLY not now! It's way, way too early!

For one thing, there is way too much traffic right now to tell if the issues are web-based or traffic-based. The fact that there is so much traffic on the website is a good thing, because it means that it was anticipated and will be quite popular in the future.

Once the traffic dies down - which may not be until late December - then, and only then, can we determine that the problems are web-based. I have been involved in many new product roll-outs, many of them web-based. One thing I can tell you is that no matter how much you beta-test a product, you never find the real problems until it's released into production: into "the wild", if you will.

Regardless, the availability or unavailability of the website has NOTHING to do with the act itself - except it's popularity.

It would seem that it's a very popular program, indeed.

[Cerridwen]

193. Thank you for this opportunity to "Trash Thread."

Really, David, "trash" rather than "hide"? Seriously, I "hide" threads for various reasons and "trash" isn't always the top choice. Framing and words.

Anyway,

You get to say this when you have 20 years in IT and understand what a large roll-out of a technical piece of software requires when it may be subjected to some millions of users hitting it a once and when you don't, let me repeat this, when you don't feed the teabagger/right-wing spin machine that is plowing down our Republic. When you have proven that you're not contributing to the problem of r/w talking points. With "friends" like you, I might as well hang with any anti-D/democratic people who don't fuck all about what's going on.

I don't care what you think of ACA or the D/democratic party. If you're feeding lines to their spin machine, you are part of the problem.

To the jury: sorry you got called for this.

[BlueStreak]

200. Unless I miss my guess,

I was building major information systems before you were born. I did that from 1973 until 2002 when I retired the first time. That period included 15 years of high-level consulting with some of the largest IT users in the world while holding one of the top technical positions with one of the largest computer makers. I came out of retirement a year later for a 4-year project, building a travel industry system far more complex than healthcare.gov mostly for fun, and that 4-year project ran into 10 years. I retired from IT for good last year to leave more time for what I really enjoy, which is music performance, arranging, recording, and mentoring.

I still do the occasional IT troubleshooting engagements but am increasing selective about that. The past 6 months the only IT engagement I took was in St. Marten.

[ProSense]

194. Krugman: Good Glitches

Good Glitches

So, very early reports are that Obamacare exchanges are, as expected, having some technical glitches on the first day — maybe even a bit worse than expected, because it appears that volume has been much bigger than predicted.

Here’s what you need to know: this is good, not bad, news for the program. The glitches will get fixed...The big fear has been that a combination of ignorance and misinformation would keep people away, that they wouldn’t sign up either because they didn’t know that insurance was now available, or because Republicans had convinced them that the program was the spawn of the devil, or something. Lots of people logging on and signing up on the very first day — a day when the Kamikaze Kongress is dominating the headlines — is an early indication that it’s going to be fine, that plenty of people will sign up for the first year of health reform.

Yes, there may be some negative news stories about the glitches. But Obamacare is not up for a revote. As Jonathan Bernstein says, the only thing that matters is whether it works. And today’s heavy volume is yet another sign — along with abating health costs and below-expected premiums — that it will.

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/10/01/good-glitches/

This 2010 commentary on the health care law was prescient
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023787146

Good advice for those signing up for the ACA
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023760193

[SomethingFishy]

196. It's being fixed as we speak... and frankly if you didn't expect these kinds of problems

then you don't spend much time on the internet. Every multiplayer game ever launched on the internet has had problems. Some of the major ones have been Diablo III, Sim City Online, WOW, all made by reputable companies with bad ass IT depts.

Shit happens. GTA V went online Tuesday. Today, Friday, was the first day anyone in my house was able to get on it at all.

The government was not prepared for the volume they were going to get. After months and months of Republicans screaming that NO ONE WANTS OBAMACARE, you can't fault the government for underestimating how many people were going to try to log in. Plus


Saying that "the system is so bad it's going to accomplish what the Republicans and Fox can't, is kind of like saying "This is the most insidious law created in the history of mankind!!

And lastly, what's your rush? You will not get coverage till Jan 1st no matter what and you have till Dec 15th to get signed up for that. So no matter what you complaints will end up null and void when the thing gets fixed.


Just so you know, I am one of those so-called "Obama haters" who was very angry when this bill went through. Still don't like it but am hoping it leads to Single Payer.