A federal official told The Hill the site was down because of the extension of maintenance typically performed at night, and the site was being made available again at 8 a.m. EST. Consumers have until 12 a.m. EST tonight to enroll in health plans through the federally facilitated and state-based exchanges. However, last week, the Obama administration announced it will extend the open enrollment period for certain people who can demonstrate they weren’t able to get health insurance because of errors on the part of HHS or HealthCare.gov.
HealthCare.gov experienced numerous technical problems following its launch this past October. Although repair efforts have improved the site’s functionality, consumer advocates have said the website still experiences some glitches, such as displaying inaccurate premiums for some health plans.
Last week, the exchanges succeeded in enrolling 6 million people, achieving the most recent Congressional Budget Office benchmark. Still, although 6 million people have signed up for plans, analysts estimated that, as of Thursday, 1 million of them had not yet paid their first monthly premium, meaning they didn’t have coverage yet, according to The Hill.
More Articles on PPACA Enrollment:
Report: Enrollees Have Qualified for $10B in PPACA Premium Subsidies
At 6 Million, PPACA Exchange Enrollment Reaches Benchmark
Poll: Half of Uninsured Don’t Plan on Getting Coverage This Year
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