SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Computer troubles with the federal government's health insurance marketplace threaten to undermine New Mexico's goal of enrolling 84,000 individuals into health plans in the coming year, lawmakers were told Thursday.
Jason Sandel, a member of the governing board of a state-run health insurance exchange, said the panel had sent a letter to federal officials expressing frustration that computer glitches have prevented many individuals from shopping and enrolling in insurance plans since the online marketplace was launched last month.
New Mexico is operating an online exchange for small businesses to shop for coverage for their employees but for the first year the state is relying on the federal exchange for the enrollment of individuals. A law creating the state-run exchange was enacted earlier this year, and Sandel said there wasn't enough time for New Mexico to implement a computer system capable of handling businesses as well as individuals.
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The board hoped 84,000 New Mexicans would obtain health insurance coverage during the first year, but Sandel said there's no information yet on how many individuals in the state have been able to navigate the federal online system and purchase a health plan.
"It goes without saying that obviously the federal government's snafus hamper our potential for success at this given moment," Sandel told the Legislature's interim Health and Human Services Committee.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told a congressional committee on Wednesday the federal exchange's glitches are being repaired and the website should operate smoothly for most individuals by the end of the month.
Sandel said 925 businesses have started signing up for health coverage through the state-run exchange and 294 have finished the enrollment process, which allows workers to start selecting an insurance plan.
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