The Obama administration it would delay a significant piece of the health-care law: the online small business insurance marketplace.
The Small Business Health Options Program, known as the SHOP exchange, will not offer online enrollment until November 2014, a one-year delay from a launch that was initially planned for this past October. Administration officials characterized the decision as one made necessary as they prioritized fixes to the individual health exchange, which the White House has promised will “work smoothly for the vast majority of users” by Dec. 1.
“What’s important in our work is to continue to prioritize the best consumer experience for those who are coming to us online,” Medicare spokeswoman Julie Bataille said. “These decisions all reflect [that] reality.”
The Obama administration is aiming to double HealthCare.gov’s capacity by Sunday, increasing it from 25,000 concurrent users up to 50,000 shoppers using the Web portal at once. Bataille said it was “on track” to hit that metric by Dec. 1.
Click on the link below for the story from the Washington Post. via Obamacare’s online SHOP enrollment delayed by one year.
