‘Obamacare Bunker Mentality’

The Obama Administration Has Been Infuriatingly Evasive About Its Failure,’ Raising Concerns About How They’ll Handle The Rest Of The Law

Obama Admin Has ‘Minimized The Severity Of The Problems’

“President Barack Obama likes to say his team is the most transparent administration in history — but on the Obamacare website debacle, it’s been more like they’ve been holed up in the bunker.” (“The Obamacare Bunker Mentality,” Politico, 10/22/13)

“… the administration has been infuriatingly evasive about its failure…” (Editorial, “Healthcare.Gov Feeds Doubts About Rollout,” USA Today, 10/21/13)

“The White House pitched President Obama's Rose Garden event on Monday as a new transparency, but the event amounted to an infomercial, complete with a 1-800 number.” (Editorial, “1-800-Obamacare-Denial,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/22/13)

“…Mr. Obama sought to deflect attention from the continuing problems by focusing on ways to get coverage without going online. Like a TV pitchman, the president urged viewers to call the government’s toll-free number for health insurance…” (“Obama Admits Web Site Flaws On Health Law,” The New York Times, 10/21/13)

“Mr. Obama might have explained what went wrong, and why, and where the buck stops, or if there is even a provisional timetable for when the exchanges will function properly. Instead, he minimized the severity of the problems, perhaps for political reasons. Or maybe he didn't say because the defects are so deep that no one can identify the specific solutions.” (Editorial, “1-800-Obamacare-Denial,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/22/13)

‘Building The Website Was Supposed To Be The Easy Part’

“The flood of computer problems since the website went online has been deeply embarrassing for the White House. The snags have called into question whether the administration is capable of implementing the complex policy and why senior administration officials — including the president — appear to have been unaware of the scope of the problems when the exchange sites opened.” (“Builders Of Obama's Health Website Saw Red Flags,” AP, 10/22/13)

“‘More than a website’ is the latest defense of the Affordable Care Act's painful rollout, and liberals are partly right. ObamaCare has larger ambitions than the basket case called Healthcare.gov and the 36 federally run insurance exchanges.” (Editorial, “1-800-Obamacare-Denial,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/22/13)

“But building the website was supposed to be the easy part. The health law's fiasco of a debut doesn't inspire confidence in those other ambitions, such as re-engineering how U.S. medicine is provided…” (Editorial, “1-800-Obamacare-Denial,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/22/13)

“There are substantive ways in which the rollout can damage the fundamental enterprise.…The premise of the website was that its rollout would initiate a wave of social media success stories that would reach those younger applicants who are so vital to Obamacare’s success.” (“Error Message,” Slate, 10/21/13)

“If the early snafus keep the millennials from shelling out for policies, and the pools of the newly insured are weighted with people who need expensive medical care, premiums would rise in the future — stripping the all-important A out of the ACA.” (“Obamacare's Rocky Start: What You Need To Know,” NBC News, 10/22/13)

“A Washington Post–ABC News poll conducted Oct 17 to 20 and released Oct. 21 found that 56% of those surveyed believed the ‘website glitches’ are ‘part of a broader problem with the health care law.’” (“Americans Losing Faith In Obamacare,” Time, 10/22/13)

“The bugs aren't just in the software. They're in the law itself.” (Editorial, “Fixing Software Won't Fix Obamacare,” Chicago Tribune, 10/22/13)

‘Tyranny’ Of Obama Admin’s Oct. 1^st Deadline Led To A Rollout ‘Riddled With Problems’

“…insider interviews and a review of technical specifications by The Associated Press found a mind-numbingly complex system put together by harried programmers who pushed out a final product that congressional investigators said was tested by the government and not private developers with more expertise.” (“Builders Of Obama's Health Website Saw Red Flags,” AP, 10/22/13)

“In the weeks before the start of Obamacare, officials failed to complete exhaustive testing of the program’s website in a push to begin signups by Oct. 1…” (“Obamacare Crashes Months In Coming Not Easily Repaired,” Bloomberg, 10/22/13)

“The introduction was so rushed that, as recently as last week, the exchange’s computer code contained placeholder language that programmers typically use in preliminary drafts, said Clay Johnson, a former White House presidential innovation fellow during 2012-2013.” (“Obamacare Crashes Months In Coming Not Easily Repaired,” Bloomberg, 10/22/13)

“Website builders saw red flags for months.” (“Builders Of Obama's Health Website Saw Red Flags,” AP, 10/22/13)

“About a month before the exchange opened, this testing group urged agency officials not to launch it nationwide because it was still riddled with problems, according to an insurance IT executive who was close to the rollout.” (“Health Insurance Exchange Launched Despite Signs Of Serious Problems,” Washington Post, 10/210/13)

“Some key testing of the system did not take place until the week before launch…As late as Sept. 26, there had been no tests to determine whether a consumer could complete the process from beginning to end: create an account, determine eligibility for federal subsidies and sign up for a health insurance plan, according to two sources familiar with the project.” (“Health Insurance Exchange Launched Despite Signs Of Serious Problems,” Washington Post, 10/21/13)

“Days before the launch of President Obama’s online health ­insurance marketplace, government officials and contractors tested a key part of the Web site to see whether it could handle tens of thousands of consumers at the same time. It crashed after a simulation in which just a few hundred people tried to log on simultaneously. Despite the failed test, federal health officials plowed ahead.” (“Health Insurance Exchange Launched Despite Signs Of Serious Problems,” Washington Post, 10/21/13)

“People working on the project knew that Oct. 1 was set in stone as a launch date. ‘We named it the tyranny of the October 1 date,’ said a person close to the project.” (“Health Insurance Exchange Launched Despite Signs Of Serious Problems,” Washington Post, 10/21/13)

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