Late sign ups could affect the numbers and perhaps increase next years premiums.

Who knows if they estimated properly anyway.

So I am guessing that is more of a date insurers are interested in.

Another consideration, there will be real world examples of experiences using these plans. If they are good they could attract more people to sign up. If they are bad they may discourage sign ups. I have no idea which way this will go.

This is actually a risky thing to run your election on. Roll of the dice it seems to me.

Go hard or go home.

Today's horses ass might have street cred in two years if this turns to shit. Otherwise he is finished (and got an early 15, which most Republican candidates seem to get for a week or two)

Who knows what his goal was.

There is a minimum level of coverage required by the law. Having no insurance at all is what is "bad".

You just pay a fee, tax, penalty, whatever you want to call it.

None of them are political.

All of them had tried to get information on the site.

I am sure that once the problems get ironed out that the projections will be shown to be less than the actual sign up.

It's been reported that the calculator for the premiums had some bugs so the premiums might not be what the site claimed. Then there are reports that insurers are receiving incomplete or buggy data. Therefore people who think they are insured because they completed the website signup may not be. Also, getting insurance doesn't mean doctors accept you as a new patient. You need to find one who does. Lastly, everyone will find out how their insurance works after their visit and after billing. My last 2 doctors appts didn't have a bill at the time of service because they needed to look at my insurance coverage. I am still waiting to see what I owe.

I know what is being reported by the insurance companies like AETNA that bitterly fought the plan from the beginning.

Color me skeptical.

I have received 4 timely letters from my insurance company and they confirmed exactly what was on the MarketPlace site.

There is a list of 300 doctors that take my insurance.

The insurance company I signed up with had the number 1 customer satisfaction in my area and client reviewers said they didn't face problems with billing. With no deductible and a 20% copay calculating my end shouldn't be a problem. I have always asked and received a comprehensive copay schedule with my insurances so I double check what the doctor's office bills.

Obviously the currently uninsured and those with cancelled policies are the most active right now, but when things calm down a bit more will go hunting.

what the insurance companies "may have" done.

And the insurers know how many people are signing up with them. They don't need the government to tell them.

First thing that came to my mind with the bullshit about "applied" vs "enrolled" is that once you submit the form, it's up to the insurance company that you select to "enroll" you.

This is an example of the media narrative that is trying to insinuate that ACA insurance is government-owned and run and the constant bashing is designed to not only torpedo and topple Medicare (which is government-run) but any future efforts for single-payer.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/114210224

From your article



Now let me explain the confusion:

The industry standard is that you have to submit your first month premium on the 15th of the previous month for it to take effect on the first of the following month.

Typically in the past it has taken 30 days for a health insurance company to accept your application, that is why the Feb 15th day has come into effect.

Under the ACA you cannot be turned down so the application process now takes place when you submit your application.

In my case I received the billing information in about 10 days from the insurance company.

They indicate they are waiving the normal deadline of the 15th and quoting from my invoice:

"We have to get your initial premium payment of $ 444.79 by 01/01/2014." And you can pay by debit card over the phone.

So at least with my insurance company I could have waited until March to apply and made the initial payment on 3/31/14 and been covered April 1st.

It is also interesting to note, by the link in your OP, that it the penalty is calculated on a monthly basis. So a family with a combined income of $ 60,000 that was one month late would be charged $ 50.

Hopefully the website issues are quickly solved and the issue is moot.

discussed in the article I posted:

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration will push back by six weeks the deadline for enrolling for health insurance without facing a penalty, a change officials say is intended to clarify a series of mismatched deadlines outlined in the law and not a response to problems with its insurance website.

Consumers will have until March 31 to sign up for insurance without paying a tax penalty in 2014, the White House announced late Wednesday. That date was already the end of open enrollment, but under the individual mandate rules it was not clear whether consumers who waited that long to enroll would still face penalties.

In announcing the change, officials cast the move as a clarification and not a reaction to the embarrassing glitches and technical problems with www.healthcare.gov, the website created to link the insured with affordable, private insurance plans.

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/politicsnow/la-pn-obamacare-insurance-deadline-delayed-20131024,0,6767960.story#axzz2ifFJ9LqW

which the LA writer continues to use interchangeably.

From your Boston Globe Article:

From your LA article



Nothing has been rolled back or changed.

The previous "Feb 15 deadline" was based on pre ACA processes which required you to (quoting from the Globe article) "send in your application".

There is no more 'sending in your application'. You click on the link and your application is automatically sent and the insurance company has to accept you.

That doesn't mean that you are enrolled. You will still have to pay the first month premium, which as shown above with at least one company, can be executed on March 31st.

A lot of the confusion arises from the media using 'application' and 'enrolling' interchangeably.

The deadline has always been, and remains, March 31st to avoid any penalties. If someone misses it by a month then the penalty would be a maximum of .083%.

a gap of coverage of more than 3 continuous months. If you missed the March 31 deadline for that by a month you'd owe
a penalty for 4 months not the 1 month your example implies.

Complete IRS rules on the penalty (with some example calculations at the end):
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-08-30/pdf/2013-21157.pdf