Murkowski: Health Care Exchanges “Not Working As Advertised”
Senator Pushes for Weekly Updates, Accountability from Administration
WASHINGTON, DC — In response to wide-spread reports of problems with the Affordable Care Act's healthcare.gov website, Senator Murkowski has asked the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide information regarding the Alaska exchange. In a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Murkowski writes:
“This system that cost more than $400 million, took three years to build, and was billed as a one-stop shop for individuals seeking health insurance is not working as advertised.
“In its first two weeks of operation, I am told that no one was able to enroll in the Alaska Exchange…
“Problems with the Exchanges should have been foreseen since at least June, when the Government Accountability Office released a report stating that the health insurance and Small Business Health Option Program Exchanges would not be ready …
“To better understand the full extent of the problems with the Alaska Exchange, I respectfully request weekly updates from your Department on the number of Alaskans who attempt to enroll in the Alaska Exchange and the number of Alaskans who are successful in doing so.”
Nationwide, the health care exchanges have been criticized for being unable to take individuals’ information and inform them of their health care options – leading a former White House official to state “I hope they fire some people” today over the systemwide failure.
