PPACA Boondoggle
 

The website still doesn't work. The number of folks that have successfully signed up on the site for Obamacare plans may only be in the single digits. The site was taken down for coding fixesand then rolled out again a couple days ago, with no apparent improvement in the outcomes for trying in vain to access the site.

What did we pay for this cluster f*@k? $634 million, and counting! For perspective:

"Facebook, which received its first investment in June 2004, operated for a full six years before surpassing the $600 million mark in June 2010. Twitter, created in 2006, managed to get by with only $360.17 million in total funding until a $400 million boost in 2011. Instagram ginned up just $57.5 million in funding before Facebook bought it for (a staggering) $1 billion last year. And LinkedIn and Spotify, meanwhile, have only raised, respectively, $200 million and $288 million."

All the noise the administration has made about the lack of functionality of healthcare.gov being such a good problem to have because the snafus are indicative of web traffic? Uh, not so fast. It stems from poorly written code, and the HTML coding used for healthcare.gov has been posted on the web for anyone to see.

What an embarrassment.

I wonder why that particular website has so much trouble when none of the other .gov webistes have so much trouble, if any at all?

Any thoughts on that, Mike?

I have an idea why that might be. But, of course, I have no proof.

Dave

Still in denial.

A bad design decision that makes it necessary to do all the 'create an account' work just to browse seems to be the root of much of the logjam. Trouble with the 'security page' has been mentioned.

Most .gov websites don't make you create accounts, or have such a surge of activity all at once.

I think your answer is this:

However, computer experts say the website has major flaws.

"It wasn't designed well, it wasn't implemented well, and it looks like nobody tested it," said Luke Chung, an online database programmer.

Chung supports the new health care law but said it was not the demand that is crashing the site. He thinks the entire website needs a complete overhaul.

"It's not even close. It's not even ready for beta testing for my book. I would be ashamed and embarrassed if my organization delivered something like that," he said.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505269_1...ogrammer-says/

Here's also a very detailed breakdown of the coding issues on the web site here:

http://www.slate.com/articles/busine...er_talked.html

Its not like account creation on a web site is "new technology". And part of beta - testing a web site is scale testing it for high volume. Check out the Slate link I posted above.

They undoubtedly could have done a better job in design, testing, capacity provisioning, etc.

What's your point?

It's over Johnny....

Same thing goes for ACA.;)

What's "over"?

you tube it

Ah. I see it's back up and running. What an embarrassment. Lol.

I was able to go there and navigate around with no issues at all, just minutes ago.

For $630 million, and we got THIS?

Still can't get past the log in page. LOL!

Huh?

Dave

Ah, I see. I didn't get that error.

I got a "System busy/not available. Try again later.", message.

GAW!

Dayyyyyum, he's flaying them. We're here from the government, and we're here to help ;)

Pete

For the time being, I have no desire or need to visit the site. I really don't understand why the Government doesn't contract this type of stuff out to private industry though. They can usually do a better job for less money.

That's a question, not a point.

Oh they did, undoubtedly.

That's just the thing. As I understand it, they usually do. They probably hired the lowest bidder and paid way too much anyways.

I wonder if that goes through an Astronaut's mind at launch?

I think that answer is contained in the question, and you're being just a tweeny weeny bit obtuse. :p

The info about who did the web site programming work on healthcare.gov is contained in the links I posted.

You guys are the same ones that want single payer?

lol

I agreed with as much as you've said. I said "They undoubtedly could have done a better job in design, testing, capacity provisioning, etc." I don't think I'm being obtuse.

"For $630 million, and we got this?" is a bitch, similar in substance to my observation.

But I asked for a point. Let me explain further what I mean. Is there some conclusion you feel we should draw from this? Or some particular action you would recommend in light of this?

I've posted on this before in detail in the forum on other paths that this country could have taken to Obamacare. If your question is more specific to solutions to the web site issue, that's easy: take the effin' thing down and keep it down until it works, and beta test the crap out of it before it sees the light of day again. Theyve got a team of "Navigators" taking phone enrollments, so best to rely on those folks in the interim to carry the water on the enrollment process until a viable web product is available.

Why don't you share them with the GOP? They've discontinued their "repeal and replace" mantra with "repeal" in recognition of the fact that they haven't come up with a plan to replace their original idea on how to improve health care in this nation (i.e., Romneycare/HeritageCare/Obamacare).

Too bad these wackjob red states didn't take the money and open their own websites like California has done. Last I looked our website is running fine.:rolleyes:

That would be asking them to spring the cash to do their own. They'd rather do it with your money, Bob.

Is there a difference? We already feed, house and clothe more in those red states than just about any other state in the union.:confused:

We WILL Californicate you all. Free organic lube for all.:)

Just let me spend your money Bob. I will even keep records and show you exactly where it went. Will postcards be adequate? Just send cashiers checks.

I'm thinking postcards with pics of the nice new mancave full of big blue meters..............;)

;)

Pete

Who uses cashiers checks these days? Just PM your PayPal addy to me.:rolleyes:

Well, temporary glitches with web enrollment are not a reason to drop everything and take 'another path.' So I don't think that could have been your point.

Apparently it works at least sometimes, so the problems may not require as drastic a solution as you suggest. But you're welcome to pass your suggestion on to the program managers.

Well, I'm sure we should all be satisfied with a product that we all paid over $600,000,000 for, and counting, on a budget of $97,000,000 no less, that "apparently works at least sometimes.". :rolleyes:

Sebillius and Dan Rooney, Owner of the Pittsbugh Steelers, hosted an Obamacare educational event yesterdays in Pittsburgh. A "crowd" of barely 100 people showed up, and they couldn't get anyone enrolled on the site due to "glitches". Hillarious.