(Image: CMS)

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) says it hashad to shut down the HealthCare.gov exchange plan enrollment toolfor agents and brokers, just a week before theopen enrollment period for 2019 is set tostart, because of a data breach.

HealthCare.gov managers noticed “anomalous activity” Oct. 13,began investigating it, and declared a breach Oct. 16, according to CMS officials.

Related: New personas help HealthCare.gov team explainenrollment scenarios

Officials say they believe the HealthCare.gov DirectEnrollment pathway system for agents and brokers to view about75,000 individuals' files.

“The agent and broker accounts that were associated with theanomalous activity were deactivated, and — out of an abundance ofcaution — the Direct Enrollment pathway foragents and brokers was disabled,” CMS officials said.

CMS hopes to restore the Direct Enrollment pathway for agentsand brokers within the next seven days, officials said.

Agents and brokers use the system to help clients resolvecoverage problems all year round. Producers also use thesystem to help clients get covered, both through special enrollmentperiod (SEP) applications and regular applications submitted duringthe open enrollment period for coverage.

The HealthCare.gov open enrollment period for 2019 is set tostart Nov. 1 and run until Dec. 15.

The public-facing HealthCare.gov website and call center arestill open for business, officials.

Seema Verma, the CMS administrator, said in a statement that CMSis working to identify the individuals potentiallyaffected by the breach, to provide resources such as creditprotection.

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