0: Number Enrolled in Oregon Insurance Exchange

The ObamaCare rollout is not going well in this state
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 26, 2013 1:51 PM CST
Number Enrolled in Oregon Insurance Exchange: 0
In this Oct. 1 photo, Cover Oregon executive director Rocky King speaks during the rollout of Oregon's health insurance exchange in Portland.   (AP Photo/Don Ryan, File)

Here's how an Oregon state representative describes the ObamaCare rollout in the Beaver State: "It is such an epic failure, literally it's mind-boggling." Of course, Jason Conger is a Republican, but there's no arguing with the facts: No one has enrolled in the state's health insurance exchange, Cover Oregon, Politico reports. Online enrollment has been delayed multiple times and won't be available until mid-December at the earliest, so the only way to sign up at the moment is to fill out a bunch of actual paper documents. (Last week, the National Journal reported that those applications are "incredibly lengthy" at 19 pages.)

Almost 30,000 individuals and families have done just that, but even with hundreds of workers assigned to those applications, not a single one has been completely processed. And there may be more people who haven't even been able to submit the paperwork: Another state representative, this one a Democrat, says he "can't get the damn fax machine to answer" while trying to enroll his mother-in-law. The big concern: Will residents whose plans are canceled after Dec. 31 be without insurance come 2014? The state's insurance commissioner says insurers can reverse any cancellations if need be, but those plans won't be eligible for federal subsidies. (More ObamaCare stories.)

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