Rare News Desk
Four state healthcare exchanges failed earlier this year when they were unable to sign up enough residents for insurance through Obamacare but the bill for the damages has just been released.
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Approximately $474 million was spent developing failed state exchanges in Oregon, Nevada, Maryland and Massachusetts, according to new reports by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation.
Nearly half of that wasted money — $248 million — was distributed to the Cover Oregon program.
The losses have propelled state representatives to hold accountable those responsible for the financial oversight.
“As supporters of health insurance reform, and the Affordable Care Act (ACA), we have been shocked and disappointed to watch the failure of Cover Oregon to launch our state’s online marketplace, especially as other states and the federal facilitated marketplaces have been gaining traction on new enrollment,” Oregon’s two Democratic U.S. Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, wrote in a February 13 letter to the Government Accountability Office.
“The impact of a dysfunctional online marketplace cannot be understated … Those responsible – in both public and private sectors – must be identified and held accountable,” they argued.
Still, other questions surrounding the inadequate systems linger. State officials must now decide whether to rebuild their systems or switch to the federal system that oversees 36 states’ programs.
The $4.7 billion the Obama administration spent funding the states and federal exchange could see more problems in the next couple months.
States like Minnesota and Hawaii have not reached their enrollment expectations and may soon be doomed failures and have their individual sign-up platforms scrapped as well, only adding to $474 million already wasted.
