For those who believe our government has become a bad parody of itself, you now have proof. As noted by WTOP, Saturday Night Live featured a skit in which Kate McKinnon portrayed Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius speaking about the problems in registering for health care. In the skit, faux Sebelius notes that the website is visited by millions but is designed to only handle six people at a time. However, the media is reporting that in the first 24 hours, only six users were able to enroll of 4.7 million visitors. In the meantime, the Administration is delaying the release of enrollment figures while contractors are blaming Administration officials for the lack of testing and negligence supervision of the system.
On the Saturday Night skit, McKinnon says “Millions of Americans are visiting healthcare.gov, which is great news,” McKinnon said during the opening of last week’s show. “Unfortunately the site was only designed to handle six users at a time.”
It was a hilarious video but the current situation is hardly funny. We spent a shocking $400 million on the computer systems for Obamacare. Yet, as reported by NY Times and others, there were plenty of early signs of problems. Now contractors are blaming the government for failing to test the system fully and the suggestion is that there was no full test of a system after almost half a billion dollars were spent. Had there been adequate testing, it would not have been the failure that we are seeing. Yet, as with so many other areas from surveillance to civil liberties, the Democrats are again remaining relatively quiet or openly opposing efforts to force answers.
In her testimony, Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner said that the Administration would not disclose the numbers of those enrolled until mid-November. However, it is clear that such data exists but the Administration says it will not “have it” for released until weeks after the launch. Putting aside that convenient lack of current data, there is the testimony of contractors that it was the Administration that failed to allow full testing before the rollout.
While it is sometimes difficult to measure competence in public policy programs, this one would seem simple. The Administration repeatedly assured Congress that the system would be fully tested and ready by October 1st. Instead it was a disaster. The most obvious person accountable for such gross negligence is Sebelius. She had the ultimate responsibility to spend half of billion dollars wisely and guarantee a smooth rollout. She failed and it is not clear what it takes to get fired anymore in government. We have been discussing grotesque waste, massive loss of property, and even open perjury before Congress. None of it seems to meet the standard for discipline, let alone termination. For those who have fought hard to pass national health care, this negligence has played directly into the hands of its critics.
Then there is the contract given to CGI Federal, a U.S. subsidiary of Canadian firm CGI Group, which has a dubious record in creating such systems. CGI was accused by Ontario of widespread failures in its computer system and saw its contract terminated. The company, which has a close friend of the First Lady among its top executives, was given a huge contract on Obamacare despite its record. The company secured a contract in late 2011 worth a total of $93.7 million but other reports say that additional contracts gave the company the potential total payments of nearly $292 million. The company spent over $1 million in lobbying which appear to have overcome the alleged failure with systems in its past according to critics.
Part of the problem for some us is the lack of a reliable source in the media. Fox demonizes Obama while MSNBC now deifies him. The fact that this program is unfortunately known as Obamacare means that the performance of the program is too closely tied to the President to allow Democrats to join in efforts to demand accountability and disclosures.
In the end, this is no joke. We have more information from a Saturday Night skit than the Administration and even less evidence of accountability for what appears an avoidable failure.
” The best approach is to repeal the ACA and reform the health care system through a bipartisan approach where everyone can participate in determining fiscally responsible solutions.”
Such as?
Such as allowing insurance companies to compete across State lines, such as allowing individuals to make their own health care decisions about whether to buy health insurance and about whether to engage with the medical community at all for their health care needs. Also, the government should be working with already established State and local health care providers if they think the federal government should be involved. I am certain the county health clinics that operate here in Florida would love to have more subsidies available for the sliding scale health provision they have been providing already. They could work toward providing a single payer system that outcompetes the existing system. There is no need for the federal government to reinvent the wheel for everybody.
If the Republicans could foresee the failure “this mess” then why not grant the extra funding requested in April to get the IT/call centers in better shape? Another request is on the record as the Republicans rail about the mess, what are the odds that the request will be granted?
lottakatz wrote: “If the Republicans could foresee the failure “this mess” then why not grant the extra funding requested in April to get the IT/call centers in better shape?”
Because this would be crazy. It is like ordering band aids to treat a severe knife womb. The ACA is bad. Nobody read it when they voted for it. Nancy Pelosi said that we needed to pass it so we could see what was in it. Then Senate passed it at night on Christmas Eve without a single Republican agreeing with it. The Democrats who voted for it went with party lines and for favors, not because they agreed with it. The website problems are only the tip of the iceberg. Once the website is working, there are other problems that will surface. The best approach is to repeal the ACA and reform the health care system through a bipartisan approach where everyone can participate in determining fiscally responsible solutions.
Decision was handed down by Priscilla Owens, found to be rated Poor by the Houston bar and who got 2 hearings to get confirmed after first one resulted in her being defeated.:
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CHRG-108shrg89329/pdf/CHRG-108shrg89329.pdf
“So we proceed to grant Justice Owen a second hearing even though we did
not allow either Enrique Moreno or Judge Jorge Rangel, both distinguished
Texans nominated to the Fifth Circuit, any hearings at
all when they were nominated by President Clinton to the same
Fifth circuit vacancy.
I would just mention two Texans nominated to that by President
Clinton, they weren’t even given a hearing. So, Justice Owen, you
are getting two hearings, maybe one for each of the ones who were
never allowed to have a hearing by the Republicans.
This nominee was fairly and thoroughly considered after a hearing
only 8 months ago. It was an extended session that was chaired
very ably and fairly by Senator Feinstein. Justice Owen’s earlier
nomination was fairly and thoroughly debated in an extended business
meeting of the committee, during which every Senator serving
on this committee had the opportunity to discuss his or her views
of the nominee’s fitness for the bench.
Incidentally, that meeting was delayed. I had set the hearing at
a date requested by the President. I assumed he meant June, and
then earlier in that week, he said he wanted his good friend, Patricia
Owen, to have a hearing. I assumed he meant Priscilla Owen
because he was speaking of the Texas thing, and I put you on for
a hearing—I mean for a vote that Thursday. The White House,
however, decided that wasn’t a good idea and wanted, notwithstanding
the request of the President, to put it off for 5 or 6 weeks,
and so we did, following the rules of the committee.
Now, unlike the scores of Clinton nominations on which Republicans
were not willing to hold a hearing or committee vote or explain
why they were being opposed, Justice Owen’s earlier nomination
was treated fairly in a process that resulted in a committee
vote in accordance with committee rules that resulted in the nomination’s
defeat last year.
Judge Janice Rogers Brown:
http://obamaspeeches.com/021-Nomination-of-Justice-Janice-Rogers-Brown-Obama-Speech.htm
Unfortunately, as has been stated repeatedly on this floor, in almost every legal decision that she has made and every political speech that she has given, Justice Brown has shown she is not simply a judge with very strong political views, she is a political activist who happens to be a judge. It is a pretty easy observation to make when you look at her judicial decisions. While some judges tend to favor an activist interpretation of the law and others tend to believe in a restrained interpretation of the law providing great deference to the legislature, Justice Brown tends to favor whatever interpretation leads her to the very same ideological conclusions every single time.
…
Justice Brown believes, as has already been stated in the Chamber, that the New Deal, which helped save our country and get it back on its feet after the Great Depression, was a triumph of our very own “Socialist revolution.” She has equated altruism with communism. She equates even the most modest efforts to level life’s playing field with somehow inhibiting our liberty.
The decision wasn;t judicial It was activism and made by 2 judges, (I did not look into 3rd) the first rated “poor” by a state bar (Owens) and Justice Brown has been rated “qualified/not qualified” by the American Bar Association’s committee on the federal judiciary . The rating means that a majority found her qualified, a minority found her unqualified and no one on the 15-member committee found her highly qualified, according to the Associated Press. She is the first of President Bush’s nominations to receive the low rating. When Justice Brown was first appointed to the California Supreme Court, she was found “not qualified” by the State Bar Committee on Judicial Nominees Evaluation. They raised concerns that she was insensitive to established precedent, lacked compassion and tolerance for opposing views, and was prone to inserting conservative personal views into her appellate opinions, in addition to her inexperience.
If it goes back before non activist judges who actually think it is not their place to push forward their conservative and right leaning ideas (the problem too if/when goes before SCOTUS) it will be judged on the merits according to law (which is why right leaning SCOTUS declared it to be constitutional but Roberts so raked over the coals for ruling judicially rather then politically that one can only hope he has the guts to do so again)
Lee Atwater is smiling in his grave. His big business cronies in the RepubliCon Party are employing his tactics in the government shutdown and attacks on government health care. Please Google: Lee Atwater and The Southern Strategy. There you will see, from 30 years plus ago, all the lingo that one sees now about welfare cheats, States’ Rights, and animal rights.
The Koch Brothers want you to believe in Blue Cross Blue Shield and to shy away from anything that doesn’t benefit big business when it comes to your health. What is insurance anyway? It is socialized medicine based on the needs and costs of a large group, except the (premiums) money is paid not in taxes but to a capitalist insurance corporation. I am moving to Canada with my half blind guy. He is a Canadian citizen and can not get treated fairly here in the United States. No pun intended.
Where are we going with this…. Now if DoD contractor had been involved…. It’d self destruct anyways…. Business as usual…..
A decision handed down today:
“An Anti-Birth Control Employer Just Beat Obamacare in Federal Court”
“The D.C. Circuit Court has upheld a legal challenge to the provision of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) that mandates employer coverage of birth control, arguing that it “trammels” the expression of religious freedom. While the legal process over the issue isn’t final, the decision hands a huge political victory to conservative activists that have long made this argument.
….
One of the dissenting opinions argues in opposition to this argument; that no religious burden exists on the brothers, just on the company. “They are not required to use or endorse contraception, and they remain free to openly oppose contraception. The Mandate requires nothing more than that the companies, not the Gilardis, offer medical insurance that includes coverage of contraceptive services for those employees who want it.” One reporter suggested that the application of religious freedom to the company was an extension of the “‘corporations are people’ standard.” ”
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2013/11/anti-birth-control-employer-just-beat-obamacare-court/71176/
Baghdad Bobkatz.
I think it also bears saying that the set-up was done on the cheap because that’s what Congress passed as a budget and Congress isn’t interested in providing any more money for the IT and call center infrastructure. When Sebelius starts getting into testimony about that she is interrupted and re-directed by her Republican questioner in the video below.
The Republicans in Congress are getting exactly the ACA rollout they want, actually, it’s probably not as bad as they would like it. They could have made it worse but they had to devote so much time to cutting food stamps in September and letting the special snap increase end last month they just didn’t have time to do as much damage as possible. I’m just glad the House has only scheduled 8 days of work between now and the fist of the new year; less time to throw spanners into the works.
From 1:45 to about 3:45.
lottakatz wrote: “The Republicans in Congress are getting exactly the ACA rollout they want, actually, it’s probably not as bad as they would like it.”
The Republicans did not want any of this. We do not want a bad rollout. We did not vote for this law because we foresaw this mess. We warned you about it. You would not listen. A comment like this is ridiculous, like a parent warning a child not to touch a hot stove, then when the child seriously burns his hand, you claim that the parent got exactly what he or she wanted for the child, except maybe the burn is not quite as bad as the parent really wanted. How about coming back to the real world?
It’s edifying seeing people I consider[ed] intelligent commenting here. It’s like Baghdad Bob has been cloned.
That’s pretty scary Dredd. I read about that. “Software is a roll of the dice when 1.0 is the number.” I’m just happy that when I install newly released software on my ‘puter it doesn’t screw up and turn my on-board camera into a laser that fries me. 😉
lottakatz 1, November 1, 2013 at 5:19 pm
Dredd: ” Worst software bugs in history: …. 1885-1987 — Therac-25 medical accelerator.
I recall that. It was a horror. As I recall when I read about the probable lawsuits in the matter the threshold issue to be decided was whether software was a product or a service, that would determine how and where the resultant court cases would be pursued. It was supposed to be a landmark case because that question had never been adjudicated before. All cases were settled out of court though. The question may still not be answered.
“Judge Rules that Software is not a Good or a Service”
http://www.decryptedtech.com/editorials/judge-rules-that-software-is-not-a-good-or-a-service
==============================
Software is a roll of the dice when 1.0 is the number.
I don’t know why they did not include various Windows x.0 releases which caused strange damage to The Force at times.
The wildest and most dangerous was:
That was when Russian software / computers said the U.S. was mounting a massive nuclear attack on Russia.
It was down to minutes …
Dredd: ” Worst software bugs in history: …. 1885-1987 — Therac-25 medical accelerator.
I recall that. It was a horror. As I recall when I read about the probable lawsuits in the matter the threshold issue to be decided was whether software was a product or a service, that would determine how and where the resultant court cases would be pursued. It was supposed to be a landmark case because that question had never been adjudicated before. All cases were settled out of court though. The question may still not be answered.
“Judge Rules that Software is not a Good or a Service”
http://www.decryptedtech.com/editorials/judge-rules-that-software-is-not-a-good-or-a-service
ACA is a cumbersome 2000 page disaster and I was initially somewhat of a supporter Some will benefit, but many will not, me included. My plan was cancelled, since it was effective and inexpensive and now I’ll get the bronze package for $100 more each month. That’s an extra $1200 per year with a $5000 deductible. I get to pay the first $5K on top of $100 more each month. What a deal! – for insurance companies….Soulless GOP and spineless Dems created a monster that will either have to be overhauled or abandoned. It’s a lousy way to administer healthcare insurance.
Jamie Dimon wrote: “Soulless GOP and spineless Dems created a monster …”
Hey, don’t blame us Republicans. Not a single Republican voted for this disastrous health care bill. We wanted health care reform at the State and local level (e.g., Romneycare).
Another version of the worst software blunders:
Top 15 Worst Computer Software Blunders
1. St. Mary’s Mercy Medical Center Kills Its Patients, On Paper
2. Knight Capital Group Loses Nine Figures in 30 Minutes
3. World War III Narrowly Averted
4. Intel Pentium Stinks at Long Division, and Customer Service
5. AT&T Demonstrates How Not to Upgrade Software
6. World Of Warcraft Creates Literal Computer Virus
7. Apple Maps Goes Nowhere Fast
8. Michigan Dept. of Corrections Grants Prisoners Early Release
9. California ‘Paroles’ 450 Violent Offenders (Without Supervision)
10. IRS Costs America Close To $300 Million
11. Mars Climate Orbiter: The $327 Million Disaster
12. Race Condition Bug Creates Blackout for 50 Million
13. Microsoft Accuses Paying Customers of Piracy
14. EDS Child Support System Is Anything But
15. Patriot Missile System Timing Issue Leads To 28 Dead
Worst software bugs in history:
July 28, 1962 — Mariner I space probe.
1982 — Soviet gas pipeline.
1985-1987 — Therac-25 medical accelerator.
1988 — Buffer overflow in Berkeley Unix finger daemon.
1988-1996 — Kerberos Random Number Generator.
January 15, 1990 — AT&T Network Outage.
1993 — Intel Pentium floating point divide.
1995/1996 — The Ping of Death.
June 4, 1996 — Ariane 5 Flight 501.
November 2000 — National Cancer Institute, Panama City.
(History’s Worst Software Bugs, Wired)