Signing up for health care

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Mick
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Mick »

SUCCESS! Finally got completely enrolled! Health plan selected, dental declined, and waiting to hear from BC/BS to make my payment. Turns out my fifth id was the charm. The other four quit working at various points in the process and now seem to have disappeared.
donall
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by donall »

tc101 wrote:Is the subsidy based on the adjusted gross income on your 2013 taxes? Does the online application process automatically go to the IRS data base and get that number?
This really depends on which choice you input. If you answered that your expected income will be the same as 2012, then the application will verify your income and you will only have to answer one more question on income. If you answer that your expected income will be different, then you have to input your expected income.
donall
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by donall »

BruDude wrote:
donall wrote:
bengal22 wrote:Seems a little premature to talk about the health care exchange don't you think. I am trying to come up with a contingency plan since my current health care has been taken away and the alternative is non-functioning. Any suggestions?
You can also enroll using a paper application or by phone. Best to talk to a local Navigator.
Talking to a navigator is probably the worst thing you can do. Try talking to a licensed agent that actually has an idea if what they are doing.
Not sure if you are an insurance agent or what the requirements for Navigators are in your state, but in my state Navigators had much more Marketplace education required than insurance agents. Navigators also have insurance licenses that include a Navigator Certificate authority.
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bengal22
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by bengal22 »

donall wrote:
BruDude wrote:
donall wrote:
bengal22 wrote:Seems a little premature to talk about the health care exchange don't you think. I am trying to come up with a contingency plan since my current health care has been taken away and the alternative is non-functioning. Any suggestions?
You can also enroll using a paper application or by phone. Best to talk to a local Navigator.
Talking to a navigator is probably the worst thing you can do. Try talking to a licensed agent that actually has an idea if what they are doing.
Not sure if you are an insurance agent or what the requirements for Navigators are in your state, but in my state Navigators had much more Marketplace education required than insurance agents. Navigators also have insurance licenses that include a Navigator Certificate authority.
I thought everyone knew this but navigators use the same broken web site that we are trying to access. You cannot get a paper application because it goes through the web site. You cannot use a navigator because they use the same broken web site. Right now the great majority of people cannot access the marketplace by any method. At least that's what the marketplace telephone people are telling me(and the navigator that I called). Not sure what to do here.
"Earn All You Can; Give All You Can; Save All You Can." .... John Wesley
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bengal22
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by bengal22 »

donall wrote:
bengal22 wrote:Seems a little premature to talk about the health care exchange don't you think. I am trying to come up with a contingency plan since my current health care has been taken away and the alternative is non-functioning. Any suggestions?
You can also enroll using a paper application or by phone. Best to talk to a local Navigator.
Navigator said she could not help because the website is broken. Also could not fill out a paper application because the web site is broken. Unlike Dublin, there is only road to national healthcare. I am not complaining but I could use some help.
"Earn All You Can; Give All You Can; Save All You Can." .... John Wesley
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englishgirl
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by englishgirl »

Mick wrote:SUCCESS! Finally got completely enrolled! Health plan selected, dental declined, and waiting to hear from BC/BS to make my payment. Turns out my fifth id was the charm. The other four quit working at various points in the process and now seem to have disappeared.
Congrats!

I'm still stuck verifying my ID. They told me to mail in a copy of my drivers license, and give it another two weeks.
Sarah
bpg1234
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by bpg1234 »

Mick wrote:SUCCESS! Finally got completely enrolled! Health plan selected, dental declined, and waiting to hear from BC/BS to make my payment. Turns out my fifth id was the charm. The other four quit working at various points in the process and now seem to have disappeared.
Congratulations Mick! :sharebeer
You indicated you used several id's. Did you ever create and use another ID after having an approved application but not enrolled yet? I already have an approved application but am stuck at the enrollment stage with blank screens after selecting my plan, etc. and curious whether I can just go ahead and try creating another ID and go through entire application and enrollment process again at this point? Thanks for any suggestions you can provide.
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dm200
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by dm200 »

englishgirl wrote:
tc101 wrote:
Gah, I'm so frustrated.
I have felt the same way. Probably the smart thing to do is just wait until we read that everyone is getting through with no problems. There is no real rush to do this, just the rush of curiosity.
I guess I feel rushed because I am stressed. The only plan I've been able to see detailed information for costs $99 a month more than my current plan, and the deductible is $1250 higher. I've been feeling the budget pinch lately anyway, so the thought of coming up with another $99 a month, and potentially a deductible of $6250 is worrying me. My HSA account balance is about $2700, so I've got a while to go until I've got enough in there to pay all of the deductible without dipping in to the emergency fund. [I probably shouldn't have spent all of my previous HSA account balance on braces, but hey! Pretty teeth!]

I'm sure I'll be fine once I get used to the idea, and if I could find information on the cheaper plans through Humana and Coventry One, I might also feel better. I just want the information in front of me so I can take my time deciding which is really the best fit plan.
If you are looking for more details on available plans, try ehealthinsurance.com . All the exchange plans may not be listed there, but, for ones that are listed, there is a lot of detail (at least for the ones available here).
BruDude
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by BruDude »

donall wrote:
BruDude wrote:
donall wrote:
bengal22 wrote:Seems a little premature to talk about the health care exchange don't you think. I am trying to come up with a contingency plan since my current health care has been taken away and the alternative is non-functioning. Any suggestions?
You can also enroll using a paper application or by phone. Best to talk to a local Navigator.
Talking to a navigator is probably the worst thing you can do. Try talking to a licensed agent that actually has an idea if what they are doing.
Not sure if you are an insurance agent or what the requirements for Navigators are in your state, but in my state Navigators had much more Marketplace education required than insurance agents. Navigators also have insurance licenses that include a Navigator Certificate authority.
lol. Ok.
goaties
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by goaties »

deleted
Last edited by goaties on Thu Dec 08, 2022 4:47 am, edited 1 time in total.
Diogenes
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Diogenes »

KyleAAA wrote:
floydtime wrote:
Diogenes wrote:There are many more security issues not fixed. Clearly not worth the risk as of today for most. Maybe in another few weeks, or not, who knows?

Washington Post today:
http://m.washingtonpost.com/national/he ... print.html
Just to help others like me understand - what are the specific remaining security issues? The link above doesn't mention any - not saying there aren't, just that I'd like to understand what they are.
I'm not aware of any serious security issues since the site doesn't actually store much personal information. I would feel very safe using it.
You may feel safe, but given it is broken what is that 'feeling' based on. Personal information passes through it and the baseline is broken. The conclusion is obvious. I have not seen the broken code to see how broken it is and where, have you ? Sorry but the fact it is broken is enough to stay away. I have read many articles about security flaws but trust common sense. What's the rush?
KyleAAA
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by KyleAAA »

Diogenes wrote:
KyleAAA wrote:
floydtime wrote:
Diogenes wrote:There are many more security issues not fixed. Clearly not worth the risk as of today for most. Maybe in another few weeks, or not, who knows?

Washington Post today:
http://m.washingtonpost.com/national/he ... print.html
Just to help others like me understand - what are the specific remaining security issues? The link above doesn't mention any - not saying there aren't, just that I'd like to understand what they are.
I'm not aware of any serious security issues since the site doesn't actually store much personal information. I would feel very safe using it.
You may feel safe, but given it is broken what is that 'feeling' based on. Personal information passes through it and the baseline is broken. The conclusion is obvious. I have not seen the broken code to see how broken it is and where, have you ? Sorry but the fact it is broken is enough to stay away. I have read many articles about security flaws but trust common sense. What's the rush?
Is it really "broken?" I don't think it's broken, it just doesn't scale. They are more architecture issues than anything else. I don't think the system's current troubles are at all correlated to security flaws. And even if there are security flaws, it doesn't store any personal information that isn't far more easily available elsewhere. The worst case scenario isn't bad at all, so I'm not worried about the consequences even should the system end up being totally insecure (which I've seen no evidence of).

My "feeling" is based on the fact that I build systems like this for a living.
Mick
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Mick »

bpg1234 wrote:
Mick wrote:SUCCESS! Finally got completely enrolled! Health plan selected, dental declined, and waiting to hear from BC/BS to make my payment. Turns out my fifth id was the charm. The other four quit working at various points in the process and now seem to have disappeared.
Congratulations Mick! :sharebeer
You indicated you used several id's. Did you ever create and use another ID after having an approved application but not enrolled yet? I already have an approved application but am stuck at the enrollment stage with blank screens after selecting my plan, etc. and curious whether I can just go ahead and try creating another ID and go through entire application and enrollment process again at this point? Thanks for any suggestions you can provide.
First id was created before market place went live to prepare for things. Never worked after market place went live. Second ID hung up on identity verification. Help line and experian couldn't help. Third id had the identity verified and got through the app but then got hung up. One help line guy said if it didn't clear up in a day or two start over. Another one gave me all kinds of worthless things to try and promised second tier would call me (never happened). Fourth actually worked cleanly and easily. Signed up for the plan after spending a week comparing the myriad BC/BS plans that all differed slightly but had a wide range of premium differences.
Mick
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Mick »

goaties wrote:
Mick wrote:SUCCESS! Finally got completely enrolled! Health plan selected, dental declined, and waiting to hear from BC/BS to make my payment. Turns out my fifth id was the charm. The other four quit working at various points in the process and now seem to have disappeared.
Did you get the all-important "confirmation number"? A well-informed rep at BCBS in our state said that unless you get one of those, you aren't really signed up. If you did, please tell: how did you verify your income? (or did you even have to)? Did you download a 12-page pdf file called an "eligibility notice"? Did it ask for "more information"? If so, what?

Yeah. Lots of questions. I'm still stuck.
Not sure about the confirmation number. Currently it shows my stats as complete and has an Id # with it. Don't remember seeing a pdf file called eligibility notice specifically but I read so much crap in the last month on this it is possible. I do have a message about eligibility so it is possible. I filled out the forms stating my expected income for 2014. I was required to send in something to verify my pension. My company has an online site to generate that so I used it. I also included a letter and in that explained why our income will be lower in 2014 than it was in 2012 and will be in 2013 (basically drawing from IRA in 2012 and 2013 for Roth conversion). I haven't yet seen anything to confirm acceptance of all that and haven't yet heard from BC/BS for payment of the premium. I'll probably call BC/BS next week if I don't hear anything.

Good luck all!
imagardener
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by imagardener »

I also made it through after the 4th id, must be the charm :-)
I tried ehealthinsurance.com but the information there did not seem right compared to what I had been able to see at the .gov site so I kept trying until it finally worked.
I am comparing an exchange policy to one through my current insurer (both with Aetna). I will save minimum of 28% from my current premium and get a slightly better plan but I could save more going with a higher deductible which I'm thinking about. Both are HSA-eligible so I set that up with Eli Lilly Fed Credit Union which someone here gave a heads-up about, links to Ameritrade so I can invest in ETF's for the first time.

edit to add: exchange plans under Aetna PPO have the same network (same doctors, hospitals) I currently have. That was important to me.
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magellan
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by magellan »

I would save around $100 a month by switching from my grandfathered policy to an exchange policy. The coverage with the new policy is about the same as what I have now, but I'd have to accept a much more limited provider network. I was a little on the fence about this tradeoff before, but now I'm very seriously considering paying more to stick with my grandfathered policy.

[OT comments removed by admin LadyGeek]

Jim
Diogenes
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Diogenes »

magellan wrote:I would save around $100 a month by switching from my grandfathered policy to an exchange policy. The coverage with the new policy is about the same as what I have now, but I'd have to accept a much more limited provider network. I was a little on the fence about this tradeoff before, but now I'm very seriously considering paying more to stick with my grandfathered policy.

[OT comments removed by admin LadyGeek]

Jim
+1

If I switched I would have a 45 percent increase in premiums with a worse policy. I would prefer to keep what I have for as long as possible. I have serious concerns about the security flaws in all these interconnected parts and expect the next shoe of identity theft to fall quite soon.
[OT comments removed by admin LadyGeek]
blueridge
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by blueridge »

Sigh, and this started as such a useful and helpful thread. Way to get it locked, guys.
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LadyGeek
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by LadyGeek »

^^^ Let's try to keep the thread open. As a reminder, see: Forum Policy
In order to avoid the inevitable frictions that arise from these topics, political or religious posts and comments are prohibited.
I removed a few comments trending in this direction (political).
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floydtime
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by floydtime »

Awesome, thank you LadyGeek.

For those of you who have already signed up, are you provided the option during sign-up to NOT have an "advance premium tax credit" sent to your insurance company?

gerrym51 mentioned this earlier, and here is the IRS information he pointed out (apologies for the IRS-ese (my highlight))...
Starting in 2014, individuals and families can take a new premium tax credit to help them afford health insurance coverage purchased through an Affordable Insurance Exchange. The premium tax credit is refundable so taxpayers who have little or no income tax liability can still benefit. The credit also can be paid in advance to a taxpayer’s insurance company to help cover the cost of premiums. On May 18, 2012, the Department of the Treasury and the IRS issued final regulations which provide guidance for individuals who enroll in qualified health plans through Exchanges and claim the premium tax credit, and for Exchanges that make qualified health plans available to individuals and employers. On Jan. 30, 2013, the Department of the Treasury and IRS released final regulations on the premium tax credit affordability test for related individuals. On April 30, 2013, the Department of the Treasury and the IRS issued proposed regulations relating to minimum value of eligible employer-sponsored plans and other rules regarding the premium tax credit. The proposed regulations solicit public comments. Additionally, Notice 2013-41, issued on June 26, 2013, provides information for determining whether or when individuals are considered eligible for coverage under certain Medicaid, Medicare, CHIP, TRICARE, student health or state high risk pool programs. This determination will affect whether the individual is eligible for the premium tax credit. Comments may be submitted electronically, mailed or hand delivered to the IRS. On June 28, 2013, the Department of the Treasury and IRS issued proposed regulations on the new reporting requirements for Exchanges. Comments may be submitted electronically, mailed or hand delivered to the IRS. For more information on the credit, see our questions and answers.
Again, just wanting to know if this is an obvious option, or if it defaults to one or the other (guessing it would default to NOT receiving the advance, if anything).
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dm200
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by dm200 »

LadyGeek wrote:^^^ Let's try to keep the thread open. As a reminder, see: Forum Policy
In order to avoid the inevitable frictions that arise from these topics, political or religious posts and comments are prohibited.
I removed a few comments trending in this direction (political).
Maybe prayer/religion is our only hope for getting this straightened out! :twisted: :happy :confused
goaties
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by goaties »

Could it be... the fourth time's the charm? I may actually have succeeded with my fourth attempt at healthcare.gov. I got all the way through the brain-dead question screens at healthcare.gov and into the BCBS website! Directly portaled to it when I hit the "pay now" button. Also got a new "eligibility notice" pdf and this time there were no mysterious "more information needed" phrases anywhere in the document. I will call Blue Cross on Friday to see if it's for real. In any event, this is the furthest I've gotten so far. I can tell work has been done on the program, particularly in income verification: new questions added and new drop-down menus.

Notes/recommendations for those who haven't tried yet/recently:
1) Don't back up! That is, don't go back to try and fix information. When a summary screen is given, if there's something wrong, there doesn't seem to be a way to go back and fix it. Oh you can try, but you might start getting bogus error messages. Instead, start over with a fresh email address. I tried to go back, got a screen claiming the system was down. Bogus. I immediately tried again with a new account and sailed right past that point, no troubles. As in most poorly-functioning systems, an error message indicates that something is wrong, but the text of the message may or may not be correct about the nature of the problem.

2) Don't expect to "shop" for policies at healthcare.gov. It's too screwed up and too uninformative. Instead, visit your proposed insurer's website directly and figure out what you want from there. Do this first, obviously.

3) Income verification now appears to be fixed. Be prepared to list your different types of income (using the rather vague categories in the drop-down menu). Make sure the total projected for 2013 is within 10% of your 2012 MAGI (I have read) or else you'll get stuck again. That seems to have proven true for me in at least one of my attempts a few weeks ago. There's no need to break down income to the monthly level. I entered yearly totals for two categories. Keep it simple...I doubt the system can handle much more.

4) Expect to burn a few email addresses as you learn to navigate the system. Practice makes perfect, I guess.
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dm200
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by dm200 »

goaties wrote:Could it be... the fourth time's the charm? I may actually have succeeded with my fourth attempt at healthcare.gov. I got all the way through the brain-dead question screens at healthcare.gov and into the BCBS website! Directly portaled to it when I hit the "pay now" button. Also got a new "eligibility notice" pdf and this time there were no mysterious "more information needed" phrases anywhere in the document. I will call Blue Cross on Friday to see if it's for real. In any event, this is the furthest I've gotten so far. I can tell work has been done on the program, particularly in income verification: new questions added and new drop-down menus.

Notes/recommendations for those who haven't tried yet/recently:
1) Don't back up! That is, don't go back to try and fix information. When a summary screen is given, if there's something wrong, there doesn't seem to be a way to go back and fix it. Oh you can try, but you might start getting bogus error messages. Instead, start over with a fresh email address. I tried to go back, got a screen claiming the system was down. Bogus. I immediately tried again with a new account and sailed right past that point, no troubles. As in most poorly-functioning systems, an error message indicates that something is wrong, but the text of the message may or may not be correct about the nature of the problem.

2) Don't expect to "shop" for policies at healthcare.gov. It's too screwed up and too uninformative. Instead, visit your proposed insurer's website directly and figure out what you want from there. Do this first, obviously.

3) Income verification now appears to be fixed. Be prepared to list your different types of income (using the rather vague categories in the drop-down menu). Make sure the total projected for 2013 is within 10% of your 2012 MAGI (I have read) or else you'll get stuck again. That seems to have proven true for me in at least one of my attempts a few weeks ago. There's no need to break down income to the monthly level. I entered yearly totals for two categories. Keep it simple...I doubt the system can handle much more.

4) Expect to burn a few email addresses as you learn to navigate the system. Practice makes perfect, I guess.
OK - after being "stuck" for several weeks - being able to sign in (working on enrollment for my wife) - and seeing her name and basic information there, we still get "identity not verified" - then when clicking to verify identity - get page not found and error messages. Live chat was not helpful and several phone calls have not been as helpful as I had hoped/expected.

Now, we are ready to create a different ID and start over. We really need to get her enrolled for Jan 1 because the basic premium will go down a lot for an even better plan AND we will qualify for a credit/subsidy.

The question is whether we can use the same email address? An earlier post indicated success after multiple ID creations - using the same email.
BackOfTheNet
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by BackOfTheNet »

This may or may not help people but just as an FYI with gmail.

back.of.the.net@gmail.com
back.of.thenet@gmail.com
backof.the.net@gmail.com
backofthenet@gmail.com
b.a.c.k.o.f.t.h.e.n.e.t@gmail.com

All will end going to the same email address (backofthenet@gmail.com). Basically google ignores periods in email addresses while websites (healthcare.gov) will usually take each of these as a distinct email. This way you don't have to actually open multiple email accounts.
blueridge
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by blueridge »

dm, my understanding is that you can create a new account with the same e-mail address. I did this several weeks ago and got in fine (after my original acct bottlenecked).

Really, I'd just try it (new acct, same e-mail). *If* you then hit a problem because it's the same e-mail, only then try it again with a new e-mail.
bluemarlin08
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by bluemarlin08 »

I wouldn't consider putting my clients information on the site at this time. Four computer specialist reported under oath yesterday in Congress and they all agreed that they wouldn't recommend anyone use the site as it is currently. If one does use the site I would make sure your identity protecti
on is up to date.
Diogenes
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Diogenes »

bluemarlin08 wrote:I wouldn't consider putting my clients information on the site at this time. Four computer specialist reported under oath yesterday in Congress and they all agreed that they wouldn't recommend anyone use the site as it is currently. If one does use the site I would make sure your identity protecti
on is up to date.

It was amazing that yesterday they said the payment part of the site has not even been built yet. How could that happen? Just not worth it unless I suppose you are desperate enough not to wait. Certainly extremely risky. Having been in the industry, its apparent cyber criminals will be having a field day.

A few links from another post:
http://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtop ... 2&t=126766
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magellan
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by magellan »

bluemarlin08 wrote:Four computer specialist reported under oath yesterday in Congress and they all agreed that they wouldn't recommend anyone use the site as it is currently. If one does use the site I would make sure your identity protection is up to date.
Technically, all four said they wouldn't use it, but only three out of four went as far as to say no one should use it (the other wanted more info before deciding).

My plan is to watch and wait for at least the next few weeks. Another last minute change was recently announced that allows consumers to purchase exchange plans directly through insurers, even if they're eligible to receive a subsidy. IMO, that's a really good thing. We're not eligible for a subsidy, but Anthem's site sends me to the exchange if I try to sign up for one of their exchange plans. I'm expecting this to change soon. Being able to sign up with Anthem instead of using the exchange eases a lot of my concerns about the reliability and security of the process.

I'm still not positive I want to give up my grandfathered plan, but the low price of the exchange plan is enticing (~$150/month cheaper without any subsidy). The new plan has a more limited provider network but since I'm not a big healthcare consumer, I may be willing to make the trade. It's still a tough call.

Jim
Glenn
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Glenn »

I tried starting the first week of October, could establish an account, but then ran into numerous problems. I tried multiple times and always hit the same problems. Phoning in didn't help.

Last week, I tried again, failed, then started a new account using a different e-mail address. That resolved all problems. 40 minutes later, I was done. Better health insurance at less money. Biggest problem was sorting through the 111 possible plans in my area.

So, if you're having serious problems with the website, try starting a new account with a different e-mail address.
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magellan
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by magellan »

Diogenes wrote:It was amazing that yesterday they said the payment part of the site has not even been built yet. How could that happen? Just not worth it unless I suppose you are desperate enough not to wait.
IMO, this isn't a risk that individuals need to worry about. It could create some cash flow headaches for insurers, but that's about it.

The systems that aren't built yet will handle bulk government reimbursements to insurers for subsidies. As I understand it, these are contractually obligated payments between the government and insurers, so consumers will be shielded from any disasters on this side of things. For most insurers, the individual market is only 5-10% of gross premium revenues, and subsidies will account for considerably less than half of that.

Jim
Jack
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Jack »

bluemarlin08 wrote:I wouldn't consider putting my clients information on the site at this time. Four computer specialist reported under oath yesterday in Congress and they all agreed that they wouldn't recommend anyone use the site as it is currently. If one does use the site I would make sure your identity protection is up to date.
Keep in mind that if you use the exchange to enroll yourself, that insurance brokers will not be getting a commission. There might be an incentive for spreading fear, uncertainty and doubt.
KyleAAA
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by KyleAAA »

bluemarlin08 wrote:I wouldn't consider putting my clients information on the site at this time. Four computer specialist reported under oath yesterday in Congress and they all agreed that they wouldn't recommend anyone use the site as it is currently. If one does use the site I would make sure your identity protecti
on is up to date.
"Computer Specialist" is code for "doesn't know anything about computers." Seriously. I've never once interacted with one and walked away with the impression they had any idea what they were talking about. It's probably safe to ignore their opinion.
bluemarlin08
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by bluemarlin08 »

Keep in mind that if you use the exchange to enroll yourself, that insurance brokers will not be getting a commission. There might be an incentive for spreading fear, uncertainty and doubt.
No incentive necessary, just listen to the experts in the field of security.
Diogenes
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by Diogenes »

KyleAAA wrote:
bluemarlin08 wrote:I wouldn't consider putting my clients information on the site at this time. Four computer specialist reported under oath yesterday in Congress and they all agreed that they wouldn't recommend anyone use the site as it is currently. If one does use the site I would make sure your identity protecti
on is up to date.
"Computer Specialist" is code for "doesn't know anything about computers." Seriously. I've never once interacted with one and walked away with the impression they had any idea what they were talking about. It's probably safe to ignore their opinion.

So...who do you listen to auto mechanics or politicians? I think not. I look at this as a normal but much more massive than normal e-commerce site. An e-commerce site like this would not get my business, especially if they wanted all my personal data. I'll take a look perhaps in a couple of months. Maybe.

Interesting article in the WSJ today,

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB1 ... 3726170258
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LadyGeek
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by LadyGeek »

^^^ The link now requires a login. You can view it for free by using the link from google: New Tech Worries Loom for Health Law site:wsj.com - Google Search

(As a reminder, discussions of proposed legislation and opinions of the law are off-topic. Please stick to facts on existing legislation.)
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denovo
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by denovo »

I have no idea why people just don't wait till mid-December.
"Don't trust everything you read on the Internet"- Abraham Lincoln
blueridge
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by blueridge »

denovo wrote:I have no idea why people just don't wait till mid-December.
Apparently, many are. That said, I personally have no qualms about using the site now, and I am a computer scientist (not a "computer specialist").
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dm200
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by dm200 »

denovo wrote:I have no idea why people just don't wait till mid-December.
My understanding is that to be enrolled in an ACA plan (through an exchange) to begin January 1, the enrollment must be completed by December 15. There are many individuals and families (including my wife) where enrollment on January 1 is important financially (as well as, in many cases medically). My wife's premium, for a better plan than she has now) are much lower (even before the subsidy/credit) and she will qualify for a credit/subsidy. We want to have that subsidy/credit paid every month to the provider. Even when working well, it is my understanding and expectation that the whole process (ID verification, income/credit validation, selection of a plan, etc.) can take some time. So, waiting until mid-December means giving up some financial benefits.

Initially (beginning of October) we could not get any significant information about the plans available. You had to enroll to get anything. Then, some information became available on healthcare.gov. I also, with some pointers in these lists - and some searching - got sufficient information about the plans that my wife knows exactly which plan seems the "best" for her (and our) situation.
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by rkhusky »

KyleAAA wrote: "Computer Specialist" is code for "doesn't know anything about computers." Seriously. I've never once interacted with one and walked away with the impression they had any idea what they were talking about. It's probably safe to ignore their opinion.
Testifying before Congress: David Kennedy, CEO of information security firm TrustedSEC, Morgan Wright, CEO of Crowd Sourced Investigations, Fred Chang, the distinguished chair in cyber security at Southern Methodist University, Avi Rubin, technical director of Johns Hopkins University's Information Security Institute.
Based on what he’s been able to glean from public record and reconnaissance of the healthcare.gov site, Kennedy says he could break into the site’s data stores within two days and steal the personal information of people who have used the site.

Kennedy also demonstrated that he could redirect people trying to access the site to a look-alike site that could push malware that would serve up remote control of the devices to attackers.
8track
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by 8track »

Has anyone yet fully completed the process of purchasing health insurance for 2014 through the Healthcare.gov site or a state exchange? By this I mean enrolling in a plan, paying the premium and receiving confirmation from the provider?
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by donall »

dm200 wrote:
denovo wrote:I have no idea why people just don't wait till mid-December.
My understanding is that to be enrolled in an ACA plan (through an exchange) to begin January 1, the enrollment must be completed by December 15. There are many individuals and families (including my wife) where enrollment on January 1 is important financially (as well as, in many cases medically). My wife's premium, for a better plan than she has now) are much lower (even before the subsidy/credit) and she will qualify for a credit/subsidy. We want to have that subsidy/credit paid every month to the provider. Even when working well, it is my understanding and expectation that the whole process (ID verification, income/credit validation, selection of a plan, etc.) can take some time. So, waiting until mid-December means giving up some financial benefits.

Initially (beginning of October) we could not get any significant information about the plans available. You had to enroll to get anything. Then, some information became available on healthcare.gov. I also, with some pointers in these lists - and some searching - got sufficient information about the plans that my wife knows exactly which plan seems the "best" for her (and our) situation.
Enrollment is not enough, you must have paid your first month's premium by December 15.
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by dm200 »

Progress! Success (so far!)

Last evening, after weeks of being stuck "Obamacare Limbo" - the ID is there, but can't verify identity or do anything else, we created a new ID (started the registration process from the beginning) with a different email. Pretty much zipped right through, identity verified (very simple) - and got up to the income part. As soon as my wife and I get the information together (probably tomorrow) we will continue. Somehow, in answering one of the questions relating to husband and filing joint return, we may have indicated we wanted insurance for both of us - not just her. The design of this "process" requires that you either wait until the very end of the process to see if two are listed for insurance - then delete one - OR go through the whole series of questions again (what we did). You cannot, in the middle of this process - just look at this and correct it. :happy :happy
gerntz
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by gerntz »

As savvy as the average Boglehead is compared to the general public, reading this makes me feel for the average person that has to use this thing.
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dm200
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by dm200 »

donall wrote:
dm200 wrote:
denovo wrote:I have no idea why people just don't wait till mid-December.
My understanding is that to be enrolled in an ACA plan (through an exchange) to begin January 1, the enrollment must be completed by December 15. There are many individuals and families (including my wife) where enrollment on January 1 is important financially (as well as, in many cases medically). My wife's premium, for a better plan than she has now) are much lower (even before the subsidy/credit) and she will qualify for a credit/subsidy. We want to have that subsidy/credit paid every month to the provider. Even when working well, it is my understanding and expectation that the whole process (ID verification, income/credit validation, selection of a plan, etc.) can take some time. So, waiting until mid-December means giving up some financial benefits.

Initially (beginning of October) we could not get any significant information about the plans available. You had to enroll to get anything. Then, some information became available on healthcare.gov. I also, with some pointers in these lists - and some searching - got sufficient information about the plans that my wife knows exactly which plan seems the "best" for her (and our) situation.
Enrollment is not enough, you must have paid your first month's premium by December 15.
Wow - I was not aware of having to pay the first month's premium by Dec 15. That does put a real squeeze on the entire situation. Seems very odd (and inconsistent) since my wife's current premium due date of the last day of the month (for coverage the following month). Since she will be staying with the very same insurer/provider as now (but with an exchange plan), I wonder if that makes it easier?
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by goaties »

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frugaltype
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by frugaltype »

Kennedy also demonstrated that he could redirect people trying to access the site to a look-alike site that could push malware that would serve up remote control of the devices to attackers.
That's just a silly comment and scare-mongering. He's talking about phishing, which has nothing to do with a site's vulnerabilities.
rkhusky
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by rkhusky »

frugaltype wrote:
Kennedy also demonstrated that he could redirect people trying to access the site to a look-alike site that could push malware that would serve up remote control of the devices to attackers.
That's just a silly comment and scare-mongering. He's talking about phishing, which has nothing to do with a site's vulnerabilities.
The fact that the site was allowing the Open URL Redirection vulnerability is an indication of the poor security development of the site. This particular vulnerability appears to have been patched, since it didn't work when I tried it. Note that this vulnerability is different than the usual hiding the real link behind some innocuous text. You are really going to the right site and it is allowing you to be redirected somewhere else.
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by KyleAAA »

Based on what he’s been able to glean from public record and reconnaissance of the healthcare.gov site, Kennedy says he could break into the site’s data stores within two days and steal the personal information of people who have used the site.

Kennedy also demonstrated that he could redirect people trying to access the site to a look-alike site that could push malware that would serve up remote control of the devices to attackers.
Meh, you have to read quotes like that in context. These people think they can break into EVERY site within 2 days. And maybe they can. The point is, that's not really any less secure than most other sites you've already trusted your private information to. All of the big sites on the internet are hacked on a daily basis. There's no such thing as a secure website. If you spend much time online at all, there's a close to 100% chance your personal information is already compromised.

His second point is pure scaremongering. You can do that to absolutely ANY site on the internet including bogleheads.org, amazon.com, google.com, etc. Of course, google would probably figure out what was going on almost immediately and fix the problem, but that's beside the point.
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by rkhusky »

KyleAAA wrote: His second point is pure scaremongering. You can do that to absolutely ANY site on the internet including bogleheads.org, amazon.com, google.com, etc. Of course, google would probably figure out what was going on almost immediately and fix the problem, but that's beside the point.
Here is the link Kennedy used (which no longer works): http://finder.healthcare.gov/cms/sites/ ... xample.com

I doubt all websites have this vulnerability, but some do. In fact, Facebook has recently paid a number of bounties for people finding this hole in their security. They too have patched the vulnerabilities.
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dm200
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Re: Signing up for health care

Post by dm200 »

goaties wrote:
dm200 wrote: Wow - I was not aware of having to pay the first month's premium by Dec 15. That does put a real squeeze on the entire situation. Seems very odd (and inconsistent) since my wife's current premium due date of the last day of the month (for coverage the following month). Since she will be staying with the very same insurer/provider as now (but with an exchange plan), I wonder if that makes it easier?
I'm not sure if my insurance company is requiring payment by that date, but they certainly are saying that you need to be signed up by then. Meaning that they have received at least one correct "834" from the government showing your subsidy. These 834's are a problem, according to one woman I talked to at Blue Cross. Leaving the whole mess until the last minute is a recipe for discontinued coverage, I think. I guess if you stay with the same insurer it might be a little easier, but since the whole subsidy system is new and malfunctioning, it may not make much difference. Time is of the essence, if you ask me.

My data point: it has been two business days already since I seemingly completed my odyssey at healthcare.gov. I still have not gotten confirmation from BCBS that I am safely signed up. Do you really want to leave a slow, flaky process like this to the last minute? When presumably 10's of thousands of others will be attempting it at the same time?
In our "Live Chat", I asked several questions about the point at which my wife picks a plan and is actually "enrolled" . The answer was that this is a case by case basis! She is just up to the income part (she will almost certainly qualify for a subsidy/credit). What I believe she has going for her in enrollment deadlines is that she will stay with the same insurance company/provider as currently - just an exchange plan with a much lower gross payment PLUS some credit/subsidy.
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