Shorter Obamacare enrollment set

New shorter enrollment periods have been set for California's Obamacare operation. The 2015 open enrollment period begins Nov. 15 and runs through Feb. 15. That's significantly shorter then the inaugural Affordable Care Act policy signup period in California, which ran Oct. 1, 2013, through March 31, 2014. The revised Covered California enrollment periods bring the state into line with changes at the federal level. For ... (More)

Sebelius out as Obamacare leader

President Obama's point person on the Affordable Care Act has resigned, a victim of the disastrous performance of the federal Obamacare web site. Kathleen Sebelius, head of the Department of Health and Human Services, will be replaced by Office of Management and Budget Director Sylvia Mathews Burwell, an economist with little hands-on experience in the health care field. The resignation of Sebelius (pictured) was not a surprise as ... (More)

‘We will not be extending deadline’

Despite widespread speculation that the March 31 deadline for Obamacare would be pushed back, Covered California says that won't be happening. "It’s time to get the word out," Covered California executive director Peter Lee, left, wrote March 17. "Californians have until March 31 to be part of making history. We will not be extending the deadline." The White House, however, indicated that those who had technical problems meeting ... (More)

Kaiser, Anthem extend deadlines

More deadlines are being extended in the wake of problems with implementation of the Affordable Care Act in California and across the nation. Kaiser Permanente, Anthem Blue Cross and Health Net previously joined other Covered California-affiliated carriers in extended their deadlines for payments for the first month's premiums to Jan. 15. Now they're going further. Kaiser is giving its new customers until Jan. 22 to pay their ... (More)

1/3 of Obamacare enrollees in Calif.

Covered California scored more than a third of the enrollments under the nation's Affordable Care Act in its first month, federal numbers show. The state health insurance exchange indicated 30,830 enrollments were logged during October. Federal numbers, however, showed 35,364 California enrollments through Nov. 2. Covered California's own figures for the first month of Obamacare policy sales said about 375,000 applications were ... (More)