MONEY

ACA deadline extended after heavy healthcare.gov traffic

Holly Fletcher
USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee
  • CMS will start reaching out to people who leave their contact information on Dec. 16.
  • People who try to enroll in a plan today will be able to get a Jan. 1 start date.
  • Some people are seeing delays on the phone and online.

Federal officials extended the deadline for health insurance with a Jan. 1 start by two days after "unprecedented" number of shoppers tried to select plans on the federally run marketplace.

Hundreds of thousands of shoppers were successful and about 1 million left their contact information for follow-ups after encountering long queue times on the phone and website, according to a statement from Kevin Counihan, CEO of the Health Insurance Marketplaces.

Navigators, people trained to assist in open enrollment, and insurance brokers anticipated the day would be "crazy" as last minute shoppers tried to select a plan.

The site was "super up and down" throughout the day, said Tatum Allsep, founder of Music Health Alliance, who helped people enroll. Allsep ran across a "system is down" screen at healthcare.gov just after 10 a.m. and said it would "be a long day."

At one point Allsep had three browsers going at once — all of which had the same wait screen.

"Don't give up!," she said. "Patience is a cherished virtue here today."

Shoppers have until 11:59 p.m. Pacific time on Dec. 17, or 1:59 a.m. Dec. 18 Central time, under the extension to select a plan, according to the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The fits and starts were largely expected by those who help people enroll, particularly given the unexpected delays on Monday. Shoppers were urged to have patience in the process and to leave contact information with the call center will begin to get calls on Dec. 16, and those applications will be honored for the Jan. 1 start.

Jackie Shrago, a volunteer with Get Covered Tennessee, said once a shopper is in the site there is now slowdown. She encourages people who are shopping on their own to keep trying or to leave their contact information at the call center to receive a call back starting on Dec. 16

"Because of this surge in consumer demand, we’ll continue to have some consumers wait a few minutes before logging in," said Lori Lodes, a spokeswoman for CMS, in a statement. "Consumers should not worry. We will make sure that if you are trying to enroll by the deadline — either by contacting the call center or visiting healthcare.gov — you will be able to get coverage that starts on January 1.”

This reporter encountered no delay around 8:30 a.m. Central, but one shopper had a minor delay about 30 minutes later.

Later in the day CMS opened a waiting room where people could enter their email to hold their place in line if the queue was taking too much time. One man who came to the Nashville Public Library had to leave for work before his application was finished

Mohsen Nagiub, a bilingual health specialist with Family & Children's Service, assists Hany Fahim, right, with an application on healthcare.gov on Tuesday, the deadline for Jan. 1 coverage, at the Nashville Public Library. This is Fahim's first year enrolling in health insurance on the exchange.

Overall, the process is fairly smooth as of the early afternoon, according to navigators helping people enroll. Sandy Dimick, Get Covered Tennessee program director at Family & Children's Service, said about 20 people had come to the Nashville Public Library by 1 p.m.

A 'system is down" message at healthcare.gov on Tuesday, the deadline for getting a plan that starts on Jan. 1

Dimick projects that more than 60 people will come to the events being held at libraries around Nashville today. Many of those signing up are new enrollees, said Dimick and Shrago.

In Chattanooga, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee's mobile unit is helping a lot of people enroll, said spokesowman Mary Danielson.

Healthcare.gov delivers a wait screen as deadline arrives

Eric Jans, an independent broker in Nashville, worked long hours over the weekend and is getting calls and emails from people hoping to make the deadline.

"I'm getting a lot of calls and emails saying, 'Oh today is the last day, can you help me?' Some are direct clients I've been sending letters to so it's funny," Jans said. "A lot of people I haven't heard of are calling me too."

He expects to help enroll people in plans sold both on and off the exchange. And if last year's experience rings true then he predicts he'll be busy at the other deadlines later this month and at the end of January.

"Tomorrow I expect to get calls saying, 'am I too late,'" he laughed.

Tweet your experience to Holly Fletcher @hollyfletcher.

Reach Holly Fletcher at 615-259-8287 or on Twitter @hollyfletcher.

Monday Traffic

  • The call center took almost 1 million calls on Monday for the biggest nondeadline day volume in the exchange's three years.
  • Over one-third of people shopped on a mobile device.

Where to get help enrolling in health insurance plans

  • Contact Get Covered Tennessee online or on the phone to schedule an appointment with someone in your area to help you for free. 
  • Go to www.getcoveredtenn.org or call 1-844-644-5443.
  • Check out the plans for yourself at healthcare.gov.
  • Independent insurance brokers also are able to help people enroll.

Sign-up events Tuesday

  • Nashville Downtown Library, 615 Church St., Nashville 37219, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
  • Southeast Library, 5260 Hickory Hollow Parkway #201, Antioch, 10 a.m.- 8 p.m.
  • Family & Children's Service, 201 23rd Ave. N., Nashville, 5-9 p.m.
  • BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee at 100 Oaks Mall, 719 Thompson Lane, 9 a.m. to midnight