Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Julianna Goldman updates the latest Affordable Care Act news on Bloomberg Television's "Bloomberg Surveillance." (Source: Bloomberg)
The last-minute move by the Obama administration to accommodate high demand came on a day when officials reported record traffic on HealthCare.gov, the enrollment website that struggled with glitches after its launch in October.
It was the latest in a series of deadline extensions or other changes the administration has imposed on the healthcare program as it has wrestled with the fallout from various technical and political missteps.Officials said the website received 1.2 million visits over the weekend and another 850,000 by 2 p.m. EST (1900 GMT) on Monday. They said a call center took 200,000 calls from those seeking insurance under the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare. Going into the weekend, Obama had said that about 1 million people had enrolled for new insurance plans under the law through HealthCare.gov - which serves 36 states - and 14 state-run marketplaces.
The hustle to sign up by the deadline for Jan. 1 coverage - which already had been extended once - seemed to be a positive sign for the Obama administration as it tries to patch up a botched rollout of the president's top domestic policy achievement, a law that requires Americans to get health insurance or face fines.
Obama was embarrassed that HealthCare.gov did not work for most people shopping for insurance for its first two months. He also wound up apologizing for promising that everyone who liked their existing insurance could keep it under Obamacare.
The backlash has torpedoed Obama's approval ratings, alarmed congressional Democrats facing re-election in 2014 and given a boost to Republicans opposed to the healthcare law.
The administration instituted a series of “fixes,” but the resulting patchwork of exceptions and deadlines has created confusion among consumers and upset insurance companies that fear the mixed messages could threaten the delicate financial formula around which Obamacare is designed.
On Monday, administration officials continued to encourage uninsured and under-insured Americans to enroll in Obamacare by midnight and said those who sign up before Christmas Day would be eligible for coverage starting Jan. 1.
“If you ar e aiming to get coverage January 1, you should try to sign up” on Monday, Julie Bataille, a spokeswoman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said in a statement.
However, she said, “anticipating high demand and the fact that consumers may be enrolling from multiple time zones, we have taken steps to make sure that those who select a plan through tomorrow will get coverage for January 1.”
She was echoed by White House spokeswoman Jennifer Palmieri, who warned that waiting until Tuesday to start enrolling in Obamacare would be risky.
“People should not think that they can get on the website (Tuesday) for the first time and try to enroll,” she said. “That would be a dangerous thing to do.”
In a mid-morning Twitter post on Monday, HealthCare.gov touted “a record day so far.”
“Thousands visiting and enrolling now. Queuing deployed to help keep site smooth for users,” the post said, referring to an online queuing system that essentially is a waiting room for those seeking to enroll in health coverage.
“There is definitely a rush!” said Lauren Banks of AIDS Alabama, part of Enroll Alabama, one of dozens of “navigator” groups that is helping people sign up for coverage.
“People lost track of time, and suddenly (the deadline is) here.”
EXCEPTIONS ABOUND
The 2010 Affordable Care Act requires all Americans to be enrolled in coverage or face penalties that start at $95.
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