The ACA/ Obamacare Website Fiasco Thread

[AWP]

This thing has become such an epic bucket of FAIL I thought it deserved its own thread.

For those of you who haven't followed this debacle, let me bring you up to speed:

You have a $500 million dollar+ website written in part by a foreign company (while to be fair they've done similar work for the "Romneycare" website, are we so lacking in capability that our country has to outsource this task to any foreign company?) which has more or less failed to work from Day One.

Now we have things like this:
http://m.weeklystandard.com/blogs/o...ement-copyrighted-software_763666.html?morans

The latest indication of the haphazard way in which Healthcare.gov was developed is the uncredited use of a copyrighted web script for a data function used by the site, a violation of the licensing agreement for the software.

Or this:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/10/14/five-thoughts-on-the-obamacare-disaster/

The backroom connection between the insurance companies and the federal government is a disaster. Things are worse behind the curtain than in front of it"
Here is one example from a carrier–and I have received numerous reports from many other carriers with exactly the same problem. One carrier exec told me that yesterday they got 7 transactions for 1 person – 4 enrollments and 3 cancellations.
For some reason the system is enrolling, unenrolling, enrolling again, and so forth the same person. This has been going on for a few days for many of the enrollments being sent to the health plans. It has got on to the point that the health plans worry some of these very few enrollments really don’t exist.

This:
http://www.californiahealthline.org...structural-problems-caused-aca-website-issues

In addition, some users who already had established accounts could not access them. Others were asked to verify their email addresses to gain access to their accounts, but the verification link did not work as intended, the Times reports.
Park said that exchange officials now have a clear understanding of the issues, adding that "contractors have sent reinforcements" and are "working 24-7" to rectify the issues. He suggested that high traffic also was a likely factor for the problems. Park said, "At lower volumes, [the software] would work fine," but "[a]t higher volumes, it has problems."

And you wanted to register?
http://arstechnica.com/information-...-button-on-passwords-as-contractors-scramble/

Amid all the attention, bugs, and work happening at Healthcare.gov in light of the Affordable Care Act, potential registrants talking to phone support today have been told that all user passwords are being reset to help address the site's login woes. And the tech supports behind Healthcare.gov will be asking more users to act in the name of fixing the site, too. According to registrants speaking with Ars, individuals whose logins never made it to the site's database will have to re-register using a different username, as their previously chosen names are now stuck in authentication limbo.

Whatever your opinion of the law and all surrounding it, we've spent a half-a-billion dollars on something that doesn't work, wasn't properly tested, and has at least one copyright violation (albeit minor, it speaks volumes about the abilities of the programmers and their QA department).

Nicely done. Everyone take a bow.

 

[DA SWO]

someone will be by shortly to tell us we are misguided radicals.

 

[comrade-z]

Talk about ballooning costs....from an expected ~$100 million to $630+ million by some accounts. The developers at CGI Federal might want to review their understanding of minimum *viable* product before they take on their next project.

 

[AWP]

I'm just a geek who believes in technology and can't fathom the levels of incompetence necessary for such an epic failure.

 

[Chopstick]

The House Energy and Commerce Committee is inviting Kathleen Sebelius to participate in its investigation of Healthcare.gov. Looks like that invite may have to be upgraded to a subpoena.

http://energycommerce.house.gov/pre...l-committee-hearing-health-care-law’s-botched

WASHINGTON, DC – The House Energy and Commerce Committee today announced a full committee hearing – PPACA Implementation Failures: Didn’t Know or Didn’t Disclose? – to examine the health care law’s troubled rollout on Thursday, October 24 in room 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building. Thus far, the administration has rejected the committee’s invitation to participate and publicly answer questions. Committee leaders sent a letter to Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius requesting the administration reconsider its participation. The letter was signed by Full Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), Chairman Emeritus Joe Barton (R-TX), Full Committee Vice Chairman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Health Subcommittee Chairman Joe Pitts (R-PA), Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Tim Murphy (R-PA), and Health and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Vice Chairman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX).

The administration and the companies involved with implementation repeatedly assured the committee that everything was “on track” for October 1; however, the first two and a half weeks of open enrollment have been defined by significant “glitches” that have prevented Americans from being able to even use the system.

"It's well past time for the administration to be straight and transparent with the American people. Top administration officials repeatedly testified everything was on track, but the broad technological failures reveal that was not the case,” said Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI). "Either the administration was not ready for launch, or it was not up to the job. The president and top officials were quick to boast the number of visitors to HealthCare.gov, but they have since gone silent, refusing to disclose even basic enrollment figures. The rollout has been a complete mess, beyond the worst case scenario, and yet those administration officials responsible have indicated they will not be available to testify next week. This is wholly unacceptable. Secretary Sebelius had time for Jon Stewart, and we expect her to have time for Congress."

Energy and Commerce Committee leaders have sent letters to the administration as well as lead IT contractors regarding the “glitches” and failures that have plagued the roll out. The committee is also requesting enrollment figures from the administration, which have been withheld from the public and policymakers to date.

The Majority Memorandum, a witness list, and witness testimony will be available here as they are posted.

 

[TLDR20]

It is awfully hard to defend something that you may agree with ideologically, when the end product is so shitty.

 

[alibi]

I never thought I'd say this, but this is a worse release than Window's Vista.

Anyone want to take bets on how long it will take for the hacking and release of the personal information of millions of users?

 

[AWP]

Anyone want to take bets on how long it will take for the hacking and release of the personal information of millions of users?

A person I trust who works in the HR and benefits field tried to log into the site several times over last week. She couldn't create an ID because it couldn't run her credit.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapot...snt-want-you-to-know-health-plans-true-costs/

The federal government’s decision to force people to apply before shopping, Weaver and Radnofsky write, “proved crucial because, before users can begin shopping for coverage, they must cross a busy digital junction in which data are swapped among separate computer systems built or run by contractors including CGI Group Inc., the healthcare.gov developer, Quality Software Services Inc., a UnitedHealth Group Inc. unit; and credit-checker Experian PLC. If any part of the web of systems fails to work properly, it could lead to a traffic jam blocking most users from the marketplace.”

Weaver and Radnofsky say that the core problem stems from “the slate of registration systems [that] intersect with Oracle Identity Manager, a software component embedded in a government identity-checking system.” The main Healthcare.gov web page collects information using the CGI Group technology. Then that data is transferred to a system built by Quailty Software Services. QSS then sends data to Experian, the credit-history firm. But the key “identity management system” employed by QSS was designed by Oracle, and according to the Journal’s sources, the Oracle software isn’t playing nicely with the other information systems.

Sleep well, Citizens.

 

[Brill]

It is awfully hard to defend something that you may agree with ideologically, when the end product is so shitty.

Completely agree: a healthy America is good for the entire country. It is in our collective interest to develop and maintain a highly advanced healthcare system. So how do we pay for it AND enable the process to meet the needs of those that provide and receive care?

The web service company should be charged with fraud.

 

[Brill]

I'm just a geek who believes in technology and can't fathom the levels of incompetence necessary for such an epic failure.

What Would Robert Redford Say?

 

[Chopstick]

It is not just the website itself that is posing problems, now we have to worry about exactly who are the "navigators" and what will they be doing to "navigate"?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...ncern-about-backgrounds-obamacare-navigators/

The Daily Caller reported earlier this week that one "enrollment assister" in Lawrence, Kan., had an outstanding warrant for her arrest as well as a troubled financial history. The Heartland Community Health Care Center, where she works, later confirmed to the Caller that she had a bench warrant for an "unpaid medical debt" -- but had been unaware of the warrant. The group said she worked with the courts to satisfy it, and the warrant is "no longer active."

Other reports have emerged about navigators playing an active role in advocacy for illegal immigrants.

The Caller reported Thursday that another Kansas navigator was part of a protest last year on Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach's property. Kobach has been heavily involved in state-level efforts to strengthen immigration law.

The Center for Immigration Studies also found that an illegal immigrant from Peru, who is part of a union-tied New York group, is working as a navigator in that state.

The United Labor Unions Council Local 100, a New Orleans-based nonprofit, was established by ACORN founder Wade Rathke after his larger group was broken up amid scandal in 2009 and banned from receiving taxpayer funds.

"At a time when our government has ceased functioning due to an appropriations gap, it is ironic that America's tax dollars are being doled out to an entity whose poor stewardship of our funds was well-established by Congress," said Dan Epstein, executive director of Cause of Action, a nonpartisan watchdog group based in Washington.

The Obama administration in August awarded $67 million to dozens of ObamaCare navigators.

 

[0699]

The House Energy and Commerce Committee is inviting Kathleen Sebelius to participate in its investigation of Healthcare.gov. Looks like that invite may have to be upgraded to a subpoena.

Based on what I've seen in the last few years, I'm pretty sure executive branch political appointees aren't require to appear in front of Congress.

 

[surgicalcric]

It is awfully hard to defend something that you may agree with ideologically, when the end product is so shitty.

Ideologically I disagree with being taxed because I want to not be a part of a US govt mandated healthcare (riggghhhht) system that relies on the healthy to pay for (a) those who give two fucks about their health up front but wants help on the back end while also trying to do good for (b) those with medical conditions which are no fault of their own.

Next thing will be a managed food plan so lazy people can eat off the backs of the hard working ...

 

[Ranger Psych]

I just love the fact that for those that actually have to buy into this shit, many are finding out that you're fucked 3 ways.

You're fucked because the program you had that you could afford, barely, you can't keep
You're fucked because it's double what you were paying for the new shit
You're fucked because it's quadruple what you were paying to just say fuck health care.

Couple it with the years-in-the-making debacle for deployment of this shit, the fact that many states want nothing to do with it at a state level, and you're being taxed for NOT participating in interstate commerce (which is where the feds, other than income tax, actually GET to tax you)... yeah. I don't even know how the SCOTUS said this shit was remotely legal.

 

[Chopstick]

Next thing will be a managed food plan so lazy people can eat off the backs of the hard working ...

I think we are already there.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162...-sparks-walmart-shopping-sprees-in-louisiana/

You're fucked because it's quadruple what you were paying to just say fuck health care.

I agree with everything you said RP but this. Everyone keeps saying that this fiasco is health care. It is merely health "coverage". None us have seen the "care" part yet. Just wait. If the "coverage" part is this messed up wait until the implementation of the actual "care" or lack there of kicks in. It will not be any less painful. Remember, they had to pass it to find out what was or (wasnt) in it.

 

[Centermass]

Remember, they had to pass it to find out what was or (wasnt) in it.

Read a couple of days ago that Nancy Pelosi received an award. She didn't find out what is was for until they gave it to her.......

 

[surgicalcric]

... Just wait. If the "coverage" part is this messed up wait until the implementation of the actual "care" or lack there of kicks in...

Veterans Administration...

If people want to know how the managed care portion of this will go all they have to do is take a visit to a couple VA hospitals and poll those patients. After speaking to quite a few Vietnam and Korea vets who choose to drive hundreds of miles to be treated at Walter Reed instead of waiting on the shoddy care provided by the contract physicians I am not looking forward to those same years in my own life now when I have to choose between shoddy care in the VA system or through Obama Care...

Maybe I too will one day be one of those old guys driving monthly 500+ miles to WRNMMC because it's the lesser of three evils.

 

[Brill]

Next thing will be a managed food plan so lazy people can eat off the backs of the hard working ...

I'm not against that to a degree however IF the sheeple allow government regulation, then, via proven track record of government meddling = fucked-upedness, we're screwed.

If you smoke, you should pay more for smokes. If you drink, you should pay more for drinks. If you eat shitty food with little nutritional value and really feel the need for a 72oz sugary soda, you should pay more. WHY? Because you are choosing to ingest crap that will affect your health. Why should healthy Americans be on the hook financially for the bad diet choices of other Americans? Don't give me the BS about "the poor only have access to McDonald's"...cigarettes...beer.

If taxpayers are mandated to subsidize something (healthy paying for sick), I chose to subsidize fruits, veggies, etc. High quality food is expensive (unless your @goon175 who shops at Wegmans) so why don't we allow more Americans to have access to it?

Unhealthy Americans are a danger to national security. Cocaine is illegal. Therefore, certain unhealthy foods should be too.

http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/20...-Rats-treat-Oreos-like-cocaine-study-suggests

 

[TLDR20]

As far as agreeing ideologically, I think that our system is fucked. It is fucked for numerous reasons. The first is that you can not truly shop for care. This kinda takes the choice out of the free market. It is also screwed up that if something happens to someone and they don't have insurance everyone already pays for it anyways, and by then it is too late. I think it is screwed up that people choose to ride the ambulance to the ER for a sniffle because they can. I think that an MRI costs 3500 dollars is absurd. I cannot choose to go somewhere else and get an MEI. I think that healthcare is ballooning at a rate that is hard to compare to anything and the govt is trying to help people get it.


Other than a few anecdotal stories about losing their current coverage, most Americans are not to heavily affected by this bill. I'm not at all. I don't have to get insurance through this, just like the 85% of other Americans that don't need to be a part of this plan.

I have also already pointed out, and I don't know how it keeps getting brought up, that at no point will the government administer care similarly to the VA. It is not a fair comparison to compare the two.

There are absolutely problems with Obamacare, however there are some positives, many of the plans are expensive in the case of deductibles. People like to point out how the deductibles go up to almost 10k in some plans. What isn't pointed out is that with zero insurance(which is the likely alternative to those plans) those people would be liable for way more than just the 10k deductible. Many of those high deductible plans have monthly premiums less than a 100 dollars. If you don't think you are paying for others healthcare now, you live in a fantasy world.

 

[JHD]

A

I'm not against that to a degree however IF the sheeple allow government regulation, then, via proven track record of government meddling = fucked-upedness, we're screwed.

If you smoke, you should pay more for smokes. If you drink, you should pay more for drinks. If you eat shitty food with little nutritional value and really feel the need for a 72oz sugary soda, you should pay more. WHY? Because you are choosing to ingest crap that will affect your health. Why should healthy Americans be on the hook financially for the bad diet choices of other Americans? Don't give me the BS about "the poor only have access to McDonald's"...cigarettes...beer.

If taxpayers are mandated to subsidize something (healthy paying for sick), I chose to subsidize fruits, veggies, etc. High quality food is expensive (unless your @goon175 who shops at Wegmans) so why don't we allow more Americans to have access to it?

Unhealthy Americans are a danger to national security. Cocaine is illegal. Therefore, certain unhealthy foods should be too.

http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/20...-Rats-treat-Oreos-like-cocaine-study-suggests

Agree with this so much. Welfare recipients should be required to Buy from a preapproved list of foods, and forfeit their right to vote until off of welfare.