Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Debut Of Exchanges Goes Smoothly
The Associated Press: Administration Says HealthCare.gov Working Well
As a crucial second sign-up season gears up, the Obama administration said Sunday that HealthCare.gov is stable and working well, a far cry from last year's frozen computer screens and frustrated customers. Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell said she expects "strong and healthy growth" for 2015. About 7 million people are signed up, and Burwell expects to grow that by 2 million more or so. The Congressional Budget Office has projected a total of 13 million enrolled for 2015, and some see the administration as trying to lower expectations. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 11/16)
The Wall Street Journal: Health-Care Web Site Users Have Few Problems
The second year of Affordable Care Act insurance enrollment, which began Saturday, didn’t have the type of widespread technical meltdowns that frustrated consumers last year. More than 500,000 people successfully logged into HealthCare.gov on Saturday, and about 100,000 people submitted insurance applications to the site, federal health officials said. Pockets of problems, however, did emerge. Some previous users who returned to HealthCare.gov had trouble submitting or resetting passwords, locking them out of accounts. A handful of state-run exchanges, such as those in Washington and Vermont, grappled with technology gaffes over the weekend that at times stalled enrollment. (Armour, Radnofsky and Wilde Mathews, 11/16)
The New York Times: Some Hiccups, But Federal Health Exchange Website Is In Good Health
The Obama administration said Sunday that 100,000 people had signed up for health insurance on the first day of open enrollment, and it offered practical advice to consumers who had been locked out of their accounts. Sylvia Mathews Burwell, the secretary of health and human services, cited the 100,000 applications as evidence that the refurbished website for the insurance marketplace was working for most users. (Pear, 11/16)
Politico: Obamacare’s Second Season Opens With Minor Enrollment Snags
Obamacare’s crucial second year got under way quietly Saturday, with a fraction of the enrollment fanfare and a weekend start expected to draw far less traffic than the rush that crashed HealthCare.gov within minutes of its debut last October. (Norman and Wheaton, 11/15)
Kaiser Health News: Insurance Exchanges Launch With Few Glitches
A Los Angeles furniture store worker who had never had health insurance enrolled in a plan for $75 a month that will cover both him and his son. An unemployed accountant in Charlotte, N.C., who tried and failed to sign up last year found coverage for $11.75 a month. A self-employed house contractor from West Palm Beach, Fla., found a health plan that will cost him nothing. They were among more than 100,000 Americans who signed up for coverage Saturday through the Affordable Care Act’s online insurance exchanges. (Galewitz and Gorman, 11/17)
The Washington Post: HealthCare.gov Opens Without Major Problems For Second Enrollment Period
HealthCare.gov and online insurance marketplaces in more than a dozen states opened for a second year on Saturday without the widespread computer troubles that frustrated consumers and the Obama administration when the exchanges debuted 13 months ago. ... Not all customers had smooth experiences. Some had forgotten their passwords for online accounts they created a year ago. Others discovered that they still couldn’t find affordable plans. And one state-run exchange — Washington state’s — took down its enrollment system within hours of its launch after discovering it was spitting out incorrect subsidy amounts. (Goldstein and Millman, 11/15)
The New York Times: Some New Frustrations As Health Exchange Opens
The health insurance marketplace opened for business on Saturday and performed much better than last year, but some consumers reported long, frustrating delays in trying to buy insurance and gain access to their own accounts at HealthCare.gov. Thousands of people attended hundreds of enrollment events around the country at public libraries, churches, shopping malls, community colleges, clinics, hospitals and other sites. Insurance counselors and federal, state and local officials said they were trying to juggle two tasks — enrolling more of the uninsured and renewing coverage for those who already had it. (Pear and Goodnough, 11/15)
Politico Pro: Obamacare: Key Tests In Weeks Ahead
The first weekend of Obamacare open enrollment went relatively smoothly and federal and state officials can breathe sighs of relief. But that may have been the easy part. Daunting challenges remain in the coming weeks. (Pradhan, 11/16)
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Affordable Care New Enrollment Period Could Still See Glitches
Open enrollment for people who buy health insurance on their own began Saturday with a key test for the Affordable Care Act. The second open-enrollment period — which runs through Feb. 15 — is almost certain to be smoother than the disastrous start last year. But it's a safe bet that there will be glitches, unpleasant surprises and more than a little confusion. (Boulton, 11/15)
Fox News: ObamaCare Signups Return With Improved Website But More Challenges To The Health Care Law
The second round of ObamaCare signups begins Saturday with expectations for an improved shopper experience but also facing more challenges from Capitol Hill and in federal court. President Obama and top administration officials have set a goal of enrolling 3 million Americans and to re-enroll the roughly 7 million people who enrolled in fall 2013. (11/15)
CBS News: Healthcare.gov CEO: "We've Kicked The Tires On This System"
Obamacare enrollment will be open for the next three months, giving Americans a second chance to register for federal health insurance. One of the biggest issues with the roll-out the first time around was the website Healthcare.gov, which crashed almost immediately after launch and continued having problems after that. But the site has since had an overhaul and Healthcare.gov CEO Kevin Counihan says this time, things should be much smoother. (11/15)
Meanwhile, several news outlets look at what beneficiaries can expect from the plans and how to estimate costs.
The Associated Press: Q&A: What's Covered, What's Not In Health Overhaul
As the federal government and states launch a second round of enrollment under the health care law, consumers should be aware of what's covered and what's not when buying health coverage through insurance marketplaces. Plans cover essential health benefits, pre-existing conditions and preventive care, but dental and vision benefits vary. (Lin, 11/15)
Kaiser Health News: You Paid What? How Negotiated Deals Hide Health Care’s Cost
As Americans begin shopping again for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act, they’ll be wrangling with premiums, deductibles, out-of-pocket costs and other vague and confusing insurance-speak. Believe it or not, that’s the easy part compared to figuring out what the overall cost of health care is. (Mack, 11/17)
