COVID-19 & Healthcare

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It turns out that the biggest problem with the Health Insurance Marketplaces in the first few days of operation is that there is so much public demand that the computer servers are overwhelmed, causing delays and error messages. That is the kind of problem any business would like to have. "Get me IT — add more server capacity, stat!"

Sarah Kliff writes, Obamacare’s biggest problem right now isn’t glitches. It’s traffic.

If you've been trying to buy health insurance coverage on the
Obamacare marketplace, you're probably quite familiar with the screen [below]. It asks potential shoppers to hang on a moment because there are
"a lot of visitors on the site."

This screen has been a big part of the Affordable Care Act's launch
so far: There are lots of people who, in Obamacare's first 36 hours,
have had trouble signing into the new marketplaces. And even if they've
gotten in, they've found it difficult to move past the first few screens
of the application, where drop-down menus for security questions
wouldn't load.

The wait times aren't ideal. Some people who wanted to sign up for
Obamacare on launch day couldn't. But though I spent most of Tuesday on
the phone with people who were struggling to use the Web site, I don't
tend to think these initial glitches will have a significant impact on
the law's success.

Everyone I spoke with, even those who couldn't sign up, took nearly
the same attitude: I guess I'll come back and try again later.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Steve Benen has a must read post today that crystalizes what is reallly at stake in this Tea Party "Suicide Caucus" Shutdown: the principle of majority rule in a democracy. 'Defending the health of our democracy':

Kudos to James Downie for bring the Federalist Papers into the debate:

"If a faction consists of less than a majority," wrote James Madison
in Federalist No. 10, "relief is supplied by the republican principle,
which enables the majority to defeat its sinister views by regular vote.
It may clog the administration, it may convulse the society; but it
will be unable to execute and mask its violence under the forms of the
Constitution." The idea that voting expresses the popular will, that
elections' results have consequences, is fundamental to democracy. It is
also an idea that Republicans are determined to ignore.

Quite right. Thomas Friedman is thinking along similar lines.

This time is different. What is at stake in this government shutdown
forced by a radical Tea Party minority is nothing less than the
principle upon which our democracy is based: majority rule. President
Obama must not give in to this hostage taking — not just because
Obamacare is at stake, but because the future of how we govern ourselves
is at stake. […]

If democracy means anything, it means that, if you are outvoted, you
accept the results and prepare for the next election. Republicans are
refusing to do that. It shows contempt for the democratic process.

President Obama is not defending health care. He's defending the
health of our democracy. Every American who cherishes that should stand
with him.

It's fair to say that Friedman, love him or hate him, is
not a partisan bomb-thrower or a reflexive ideologue. I don't imagine
it was easy for him to write a column accusing Republican lawmakers of
attacking democratic norms and abandoning the standards of the American
tradition, which makes it all the more important that he did so anyway.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

These ignorant people make you want to cry for the future of our country. And these low information voters maybe will vote, if they remember its election day. the LA Times reports, Jimmy Kimmel: Do you prefer Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act?:

Jimmy Kimmel, the late-night talk show, has become known for his
man-on-the-street interviews where he exposes people's ignorance on
music, fashion, current events and other trends.

So on the eve of the Affordable Health Care Act rollout, he
dispatched a camera crew to ask people in Hollywood: Which is better —
The Affordable Care Act or Obamacare?

Hilarity quickly ensues.

BTW, Republican support of President Obama’s healthcare legislation rose by
eight percentage points when identified as the Affordable Care Act
instead of “Obamacare,” in a new Fox News poll.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:   I love the smell of ObamaCare in the morning. It smells like . . . Victory.*   * The TanMan, Weeper of the House John Boehner, on September 20, 2013 called the House CR rejected by the Senate a "victory for the American people and a victory for common sense." h/t … Read more

Posted by AzBlueMeanie: The GOP Grinches couldn't stop "ObamaCare" from coming. The Health Insurance Marketplace for the uninsured is now open for business! Go to HealthCare.gov and and follow the prompts to open up the Arizona Health Insurance Marketplace. I would expect delays today as millions of people want to check out their federally run … Read more