Archive for October 20th, 2013
Tweets Of The Day
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NOTE: This is one person’s experience (who is on a November 6 deadline). It is not an independent analysis. Your experience may be different. Do not skip any steps if it will be disadvantageous for your health insurance enrollment process or if it will negatively affect the subsidy that you may qualify for (which will lead to lower premiums) and the health insurance plans that you may be eligible for. Follow the proper healthcare.gov instructions so that you will receive affordable, quality, and comprehensive health coverage.
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A lot of TOD’ers have been questioning Healthcare.gov‘s functionality….
I want to share my experience to date, and for the many asking there is a paper application available contrary to reports.
ME: I have been trying to get premium quotes since Oct. 3, when Experian verified my account. The following week if I could log in it would just say “application in process” the week after that I couldn’t log in anymore. The people on the hotline are not getting any assists from the IT people, and are just getting yelled at 24/7. I spent a hour with a lady last weekend just having a nice conversation, telling her I understand they left her out to dry, and she was so appreciative. The problem is for the last 10 days around 10 p.m. EST they shut the site down for maintenance and in that process they erased the passwords of the accounts of early applications, due to privacy conformity. So my suggestion to anybody is create a new account and skip the “subsidy eligibility” info (much shorter process) and try to get the plans offered through that process. I got the furthest by doing that. Still haven’t been able to see what Plans are available, but am noticing improvements every day. My asshole A.G. is also suing the Federal Government to prevent anyone from receiving subsides, on top of RWNJ Gov. Mike Pence not expanding Medicaid(after passing laws to prevent union organization last year)……. because he is running for President in 2016. I have till Nov. 6, before I have to decide to keep my current coverage with AnthemBCBS…..so I just implore patience to everyone. In due time………
TOD’er: WHOA. Can’t believe the hotline doesn’t have IT back-up. What’s the point of that? Wow, I hope it all works out for you, SOON.
ME: It is B.S. the I.T. folks leave the phone reps in the wind, TOD’er. One other option I suggest for people trying to sign up is having the telephone Rep. fill out an application manually. It is a much more longer/tedious process, but they are happy to do it if you wish. By doing so, they submit the paper application to the proper channel, and you are supposed to be contacted within 10 days by either Healthcare.Gov rep or an Insurance Provider personally. At that point they will walk you through your coverage options, but it is a guaranteed way to have your application processed, and bypass any website hiccups
To apply by phone, call 1-800-318-2596, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (TTY: 1-855-889-4325). A customer service representative will work with you to complete the application and enrollment process.
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To be clear, there are several options for enrollment. My particular case was just one using the online vehicle. This suggesting was an option online to get to the premium quotes faster, without filling out the tax information. I have already done that, but still can’t login with the account I created. You can always update you info once creating an account(Even when you initially create an account, it will give you the option of choosing the faster route). My situation was I have until Nov.6 to determine whether to keep my current coverage. Also keep in mind your individual state my have established their own exchanges. The main focus I am trying to convey is there are several ways to FULLY enroll, subsidies and all. Locally, by phone, online, or by mail.
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Continue reading ‘Options For Enrolling And Questions Regarding The ACA’
A Picture Or Two
Visitors on the 2009 Fall Garden Tour pass by the Oval Office as President Barack Obama talks on the phone with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, Oct. 17, 2009. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
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Rise and Shine
On This Day: Veterans applaud President Barack Obama as he departs the recognition ceremony honoring Troop A, First Squadron, 11th Armored Combat Regiment of the U.S. Army, recipients of the Presidential Unit Citation, in the Rose Garden of the White House, Oct. 20, 2009, (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
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https://twitter.com/NerdyWonka/status/391700946293506048
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TPM: AP Sources: 476,000 Obamacare Applications Filed
Administration officials say about 476,000 health insurance applications have been filed through federal and state exchanges, the most detailed measure yet of the rollout of President Barack Obama’s signature legislation. Of the 476,000 applications that have been started, just over half have been from the 36 states where the federal government is taking the lead in running the markets.
The rest of the applications have come from the 14 states running their own markets, along with Washington, D.C. The White House says it plans to release the first enrollment totals from both the federal and state-run markets in mid-November. An internal memo obtained by The Associated Press showed that the administration projected nearly a half-million people would enroll for the insurance markets during the first month.
More here (the piece is full of Julie Pace of AP’s doom and gloom crap; but the bottom line is Americans like ObamaCare)
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Trip Gabriel: A Governor’s Last Campaign – To Prove Health Law Works
Some 34,000 had begun applications, and more than 11,000 had signed up for plans, making Kentucky one of the most successful state-run insurance marketplaces under the new federal health care law. “You are all doing a fantastic job,” Mr. Beshear told two dozen bleary-eyed workers. “My message to Kentuckians is simply this,” Mr. Beshear said in his office in the State Capitol. “You don’t have to like the president; you don’t have to like me. Because this isn’t about him, and it’s not about me. It’s about you, your family and your children. So do yourself a favor. Find what you can get for yourself. You’re going to like what you find.” Kentucky is the only Southern state to operate its own insurance exchange as well as expand Medicaid coverage for the poor.
“To me this was a moral decision,” he said. “We’ve got 640,000 Kentuckians who don’t have access to any kind of affordable health care. The last ranking I saw, we’re 44th out of 50 in health status. You take any chronic disease or condition — heart disease, cancer, smoking, obesity, you name it — and we’re either the worst or close to the worst.” He also said the law made economic sense, citing a state-commissioned study that found that an expansion of Medicaid over eight years would “create a $15.6 billion economic impact” and almost 17,000 new jobs. “Most of these critics are going to end up with egg on their face,” the governor predicted. “People are finding that I can get health insurance for the first time in my life that I can afford. They’re going to look back at these folks after all the dust settles and say, ‘You misled us.’ ”
More here
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https://twitter.com/DirkZ1/status/391910676588793856
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Max Fisher: Good News From Syria (Really): Chemical Weapons Being Dismantled On Schedule
The U.S.- and Russia-brokered deal to have Syria surrender its chemical weapons is proceeding on schedule, United Nations inspectors tell the Wall Street Journal, despite widespread predictions that Syria’s civil war would make the effort impossible. The U.N. team had set an ambitious goal of disabling all chemical weapons production equipment by Nov. 1 and said it’s on track to finish it in time.
More here
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Early Bird Chat
On This Day: President Obama high fives with a boy at a fundraiser for Bill Owens, the Democratic candidate running for New York’s 23rd Congressional District, at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in New York, Oct. 20, 2009 (Photo by Pete Souza)
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MoooOOOooorning everyone! A gazillion thank yous for all the good Danny wishes last night, I fell in to a heap of sleep – and luckily, Danny did too. Happy Sunday!
The Obama Diary 
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