Kaiser Health News profiles the Obama administration’s new website fix-it guy. And, in other news, The Associated Press reports that some workers at a federal health care call center for the health exchanges are now suing the government because they allegedly were forced to work unpaid overtime.   Â
Kaiser Health News: Ex-Microsoft Exec Brings Lists And Whiteboard To Overhaul Of Obamacare Website
Kurt DelBene’s office is on the sixth floor of the fortress-like Department of Health and Human Services, overlooking the Capitol reflecting pool. With little but a desk, a small laptop, and monitor, it looks barren, like someone just moved out. But DelBene, a longtime Microsoft executive, moved in six weeks ago. He came from the other Washington, after President Barack Obama named him healthcare.gov’s new fix-it guy -; the successor to “tech-surge czar†Jeff Zients. DelBene is here to shore up the famously flawed Obamacare website, not decorate an office. The most telling evidence of his arrival is on the wall to the right of his workstation, where a large whiteboard is covered with scribbled notes about databases, security features, website capacity, and the like (Hernandez, 1/29).Â
The Associated Press: Health Care Call Center Lawsuit Alleges Unpaid OT
Customer service workers at a call center for insurance exchanges established under the federal health care overhaul have sued their employer in federal court, saying they were forced to work unpaid overtime. The nine workers at a Boise facility who brought the suit against Maximus Inc. say the case could potentially apply to thousands of employees, and they’re asking a judge to award damages exceeding $5 million (Boone, 1/28).
News outlets also offer health exchange updates for Maryland, Kentucky, Washington state, Iowa and New Hampshire. Â
The Associated Press/Washington Post: Md. Health Exchange Bill Could Be Finalized Soon
A final vote is near on a measure to help people who could not enroll in a private health plan on Maryland’s health exchange website due to computer problems last year. The Senate, which already approved a version of the bill, could take up final passage as soon as Wednesday on the bill that has some changes made by the House of Delegates (1/29).
The Baltimore Sun: Maryland To Allow Small Businesses To Offer Small Group Health Plans
Maryland approved a plan Monday to allow small businesses to offer employees small group health plans in April, but pushed back the launch of its small business health care exchange website to Jan. 1, 2015, in line with the federal health exchange. The program, which would give small business employees access to federal tax credits, was initially slated to open in October, but was delayed due to glitches that have plagued the state’s exchange. Certified plans and access to tax credits worth up to 50 percent of the employer’s contribution toward employee premium costs, will be available directly through carriers, third party administrators and brokers starting April 1 (Campbell, 1/27).
The Associated Press: Obama: Beshear ‘A Man Possessed’ About Health Care
Kentucky’s high performance for health care sign-ups through its state-run website has earned Gov. Steve Beshear a White House invitation to attend President Barack Obama’s State of the Union speech. Beshear, a strong supporter of Obama’s health care law, was among the guests sitting with first lady Michelle Obama when the president delivered the annual speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night (Schreiner, 1/28).
The Seattle Times: Obamacare Enrollment Continues To Climb In Washington State
More than 320,000 people have signed up for insurance or newly enrolled in Medicaid through Washington’s online health insurance exchange. Of that number, more than 86,000 are now covered by private insurance purchased through the exchange, according to state data ending Jan. 23. The rest are new participants in Medicaid (Stiffler, 1/28).