A surge of last-minute callers inundated the state’s health insurance exchange for the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, forcing the agency to extend its hours of operation and the sign-up deadline for obtaining federally mandated health insurance.

The December 15 deadline for signing up with Covered California for coverage beginning on January 1 was temporarily extended to December 17 in order to accommodate customers frustrated by longer than normal waits.

“The spike in interest we are seeing in the last few days tells us there is continued demand for quality, affordable coverage,” Peter V. Lee, the executive director for Covered California, said in a press release. “We already have enrolled more consumers this year for Jan. 1 coverage than we did last year.”

Residents can still avoid the 2016 Obamacare health care tax penalty by obtaining health insurance by January 31, 2016.

Covered CA Chaos: English callers disconnected, hour wait for procrastinators

When CalWatchdog.com tried contacting Covered California the morning of the signup deadline, the average wait for an online chat with a customer service representative was more than an hour.

That was better than phone service. English-language callers were told to call back later, before being hung up on. Callers that selected the Spanish language option were able to reach a bilingual customer service agent in a fraction of the time.

“We are experiencing high call volumes today because of the Dec. 15 deadline to have coverage starting Jan. 1,” Covered California spokesperson Lizelda Lopez told CalWatchdog.com. “In some instances, callers may have gotten a message to call back later.”

Covered California responded to the high call volume by extending the service center’s hours of operation from 8 p.m. to midnight.

Lopez said that the average wait on December 14  and 15 was nearly five times longer than normal. From November 1 to December 13, callers to Covered California’s customer service line experienced an average wait time of less than 3 minutes. But, the day before and day of the signup deadline that increased to 14 minutes.

“Average wait time today is back to less than 3 minutes,” Lopez told CalWatchdog.com on December 16.

Although the agency didn’t provide data on the average wait by language, the overwhelming majority of its customer service agents provide English-language support. Covered California has 1,100 English-language telephone support employees, compared to just 190 Spanish-language telephone support staff and 80 employees for all other languages.

Record Number of Signups in 2015

The flip side of longer waits: more people signing up. Covered California says that more than 55,000 people signed up in the final two days before the originally scheduled deadline.

In total, more than 197,000 people had enrolled in health care coverage by the end of Tuesday, Dec. 15, including more than 22,000 on Monday, December 14 and more than 32,000 on Tuesday, December 15. That’s a 57 percent increase over last year, when approximately 35,000 people signed up for coverage on Dec. 14-15, 2014.

“The interest we have seen over the last two days is further proof of the continued demand that Californians have for quality, affordable health care coverage,” Lee, Covered California’s executive director, said in a statement. “We want to make sure that everyone who is working to get in the door has the time they need to get the coverage they deserve.”

750,000 Uninsured California Residents

According to Covered California’s estimates, as many as 750,000 Californians that lack health insurance are eligible for Obamacare health care subsidies. Additionally, 1.4 million California residents are eligible for free or low-cost health care under Medi-Cal, the state’s welfare program serving low-income residents.

Uninsured California residents can still enroll during Covered California’s open enrollment period by calling (800) 300-1506, between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

“Of course, individuals and families can sign up in a multitude of ways, including: online, at a storefront, with an enroller,” Lopes reminded customers.

To sign up online, visit the agency’s website: CoveredCA.com. To find the nearest in-person enrollment center, visit CoveredCA.com/get-help/local. Enrollment assistance is free, confidential and available in a variety of languages.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Covered California is offering a special enrollment opportunity for consumers who did not know or understand there was a tax penalty for being uninsured in 2014 or who learned they may face a penalty for 2015.

“For the first time, health care and taxes now are linked arm in arm,” Covered California Executive Director Peter V. Lee said. “The law requires everyone to be insured, and if you’re not, you may face a significant financial penalty when you file your taxes this year.”

From Feb. 23 until April 30, 2015, consumers are eligible to apply for health coverage during special enrollment by attesting that they did not realize there was a tax penalty. To attest to this fact, they can select “Informed of Tax Penalty Risk” when filling out an application at CoveredCA.com.

The new deadline also comes two weeks after the April 15 deadline for filing income tax forms, and paying any back taxes, to the IRS. Covered CA’s announcement recognizes that this will be a big spur to action:

The new tax penalty for being uninsured — known as the “shared responsibility payment” — motivated many consumers to purchase insurance this year during the Nov. 15-Feb. 15 open-enrollment period via Covered California. Unfortunately, many people who are supposed to purchase insurance may be unaware of the penalty and surprised when they go to their tax preparation professional for help. …

For the first time, consumers who are filing their taxes this year may be paying a penalty for not having health insurance. And the penalty for going without insurance in 2015 will go up significantly: Those who can afford insurance but choose not to buy it will be subject to paying $325 per adult in a household or 2 percent of their income, whichever is greater.

Veterans may be exempt

The Covered CA announcement does not mention it, but there is an exemption for U.S. military veterans. The federal Veterans Administration website advises:

You do not have to pay a fee if you have coverage that meets a minimum standard (called “minimum essential coverage”). VA is required by law to notify the IRS of veterans’ enrollment status in the VA health care system in 2014. Veterans who are not enrolled in the VA health care system and who do not have qualifying medical insurance, unless given an exemption, will be charged a fee beginning on their 2014 federal income tax return, which most people will file in the spring of 2015. The fee is prorated based on the amount of time in the calendar year the Veteran does not have medical insurance that meets minimal essential coverage standards.

Explanations of VA medical benefits, and how to sign up for them, are here.

More than a million Californians benefitted from federally subsidized health insurance in 2014 through the nation’s health care law. But now the law is about to give many of them a migraine. 

It’s tax season, and for the first time Obamacare is showing up on tax forms. And it’s leading to confusion and angst over new rules and their impact on taxpayers’ pocketbooks. 

That’s because taxpayers must now reconcile the subsidy they received with the income they estimated they would earn last year. In addition, people who ignored the Affordable Care Act’s requirement to obtain health insurance in 2014 now face a financial penalty levied by the Internal Revenue Service — unless they qualify for an exemption.

Meanwhile, rates continue to rise for many under the “Affordable” Care Act. CBS News — not a conservative site — reported:

a number of low-priced Obamacare plans will raise their rates in 2015, making those options less affordable. On top of that, penalties for failing to secure a health-insurance plan will rise steeply next year, which could take a big bite out of some families’ pocketbooks.

“The penalty is meant to incentivize people to get coverage,” said senior analyst Laura Adams of InsuranceQuotes.com. “This year, I think a lot of people are going to be in for a shock”….

The financial penalty for skipping out on health coverage will more than triple to $325 per person in 2015, or 2 percent of income, depending on whichever is higher. Children will be fined at half the adult rate, or $162.50 for those under 18 years old.

That’s right. The Grim Reaper even comes for kids.

Those who favor legal abortion say “women should control their bodies.” But in America, the government controls all our bodies.

As former Budget Director David Stockman wrote:

There is a huge irony in this. America is allegedly the greatest assemblage of shoppers on the planet, and the rise of low-cost shopping meccas like Wal-Mart, its kindred big-box and specialty retailers, and now Amazon, is striking evidence of this societal competence in consumer choice. But with this tremendous resource for efficiency and cost-containment largely banished from the health care system, we end up with an uneven battle between the cost containment regulations issued by bureaucrats and third-party payors and the plunder of the cartels which dominate the delivery machinery.

The destruction of consumer choice and the shopping prowess of Americans in the health care delivery system was made in Washington—-not because people are not competent enough to choose among doctors, treatments, and vendors. Specifically, it started with the IRS’ WWII determination that employer health plans were not taxable income—a fraught policy decision that inherently created a bias towards tax-excludable insurance coverage versus after-tax out-of-pocket payments.

By the 1960s, employer health coverage was already creating an inflationary bias in the system, and a perceived inequity in terms of access to health care by the aged and poor who by definition weren’t part of the employer covered population. That resulted in LBJ’s landmark Medicare and Medicaid legislation, and before long a second prong of price-insensitive health care spending was off to the races.

The post-enactment explosion of costs for these programs is well-known, but the actual figures nevertheless powerfully reinforce the point. By the time these programs were up and running in 1970, combined Medicare and Medicaid costs (including state matching) amounted to $15 billion and 1% of GDP. Thirty years later the costs had escalated to $375 billion and 5% of GDP. Today they cost $1.2 trillion and with WIC and related child health programs, the total is $1.4 trillion. Finally, even conservative projections which embody far less than the worst case for Obamacare, show that government health spending will reach $2.4 trillion annually or 10% of GDP by 2022.

It goes without saying that the health care needs of the poor and elderly did not rise from 1% of GDP to a prospective 10% of GDP over the course of 50 years. What actually happened was that Washington created an enormous insurance pool for an uninsurable service, and then invited the medical professions to morph into the beltway’s greatest crony capitalist lobby.

The American Medical Association, for instance, fell on its sword in opposition to LBJ’s original legislation. Yet by 2010, it sold its soul in support of Obamacare in exchange for a more doc-friendly regime, the very thing which will cause the cost of Obamacare to balloon in the years ahead.

He says he lost his own policy cuz of ACA and notes how the law creates incentive for employers to stop offering full-time jobs.

Brown links Kashkari to Goldman Sachs, says he’s like arsonist putting out fire.

He defends Covered California and CA’s record in general in implementing ACA.

Responds to economic criticism by citing raise in minimum wage and signing of law letting undocumented immigrants get driver’s licenses so they can work. Leads perfectly to next question.

Telemundo anchor asks about fact these licenses are different and stand out and mark holders as undocumented.

Brown says federal law requires distinction and vows no discrimination will take place. Pats himself on back for getting license law enacted.

Kashkari says federal immigration reform is what’s needed. “We can’t solve this at a state level.” Says he would’ve signed the law that Brown did.

Thought Kashkari would link this issue to Vergara and Latinos, but no.

Next questioner asks Kashkari to rate Schwarzenegger’s record as gov.

Cites their common background as immigrants. Says Arnold probably wished he could have gotten more done. Says his work on TARP shows he can overcome bipartisan differences to get things down.

Returns to economy. “24 percent poverty. Governor Brown doesn’t like to talk about it.”

Brown links Kashkari again to Goldman Sachs.

Says Arnold lacked “insider knowledge” to get things done.

Brown: “We are making incremental progress.” No specific response on poverty.

Questioner asks gov about bill banning plastic bags.

Brown says he’ll probably sign it and says too many local govs have conflicting ordinances.

Kashkari says he wouldn’t sign it and mocks Brown, Legislature for their focus on trivia like this and laws allowing dogs in restaurants and setting football practice limits.

“We actually need bold reform … not limits on football practice.”

If it wins, that means health insurance rates also will be going up, now down. That’s because some insurance companies won’t be able to make a profit if their rates are kept artificially low. So they’ll pull out of the state. Reduced competition will force rates up — and those who can’t pay will go into Obamacare.

Something similar happened about 15 years ago to workers’ compensation insurance. The state wouldn’t let insurance companies make a profit, so they left. That turned more than 50 percent of work comp insurance over to the state fund until bipartisan reform, passed by the Democratic Legislature and signed by Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, in 2004 restored balance.

But things are different in the case of overall health care. That’s because it already was reformed, in 2010 with the Affordable Care Act — Obamacare.

The Field Poll also just found that 56 percent of Californians backed Obamacare and its state implementation, Covered California; 35 percent were opposed.

Of course, that’s before the massive spikes in premiums scheduled for the future, as Troy Anderson reported yesterday on our website.

Single-payer

But what I think all of this is heading toward is a single-payer, socialist system for California. Advocates have said it’s the only way to keep costs down. Even Schwarzenegger provided his own version in 2007, although it was criticized even by the left for its complications and high cost.

We’ll probably end up with something like the Canadian plan, with costs kept down by forcing people into long lines, sometimes till they’re dead, as even the New York Times reported.

Canada also bans most alternatives to the government system. That seems unlikely to happen here. So there still will be non-government medicine in California, just outside the socialist system and very expensive. The leftists in Hollywood and Silicon Valley who favor socialism for everyone else still will be able to pay for the best care with cold hard cash.

There will be alternatives for the middle class: Save your money and pay cash for health care elsewhere — Mexico, Singapore, India. Time to make sure your passport is in order.

According to R Street, “Such a system already exists in the property and casualty market as a result of the infamous and lamentable Proposition 103.”

The endorsement makes sense. If it passed, Prop. 14 will chase some health-insurance companies out of California because the price controls will make them unable to make a profit. That will cause many people to rush into Obamacare/Covered California, making it finally seem to be a “success.”

And the state will take one more step toward the single-payer, socialized medicine, Soviet-North Korean-style scheme Democrats have backed for decades.

But for now, one that caught my eye is backed by Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones and would give him vast new powers to regulate medical-insurance rates, much as he already has for car and housing insurance.

That would be on top of the Obamacare mess. And who knows what the U.S. Supreme Court will rule this week on the Obamacare mandate forcing companies or charities to cover contraceptives even if it violates their religious beliefs — if the mandate stands, an extreme violation of the First Amendment right to freedom of religion.

The bottom line of all this is more medical socialism, meaning much worse care. I suggest saving your money so, if you need real care, you can fly to Singapore or some other free country where they have inexpensive care you can pay for with cash.

It’s a shame. Before 1965, when LBJ’s socialized Medicare and Medicaid systems were imposed on us, America had the world’s best medical system, including charity for the poor. Now each of us has a date with a death panel.

Nearly 1,500 Californians have complained to state regulators in the last four months about their Obamacare coverage purchased through California’s insurance exchange.

New data reveal the biggest category of complaints centers on getting confirmation of health plan enrollment and basic issues such as getting an identification card to obtain care.

Many consumers have also encountered difficulty finding a doctor who accepts their new coverage, as well as frustration with inaccurate provider lists, according to the California Department of Managed Health Care.

“If you have a medical condition and can’t get care that is a very serious issue,” said Marta Green, spokeswoman for the managed healthcare agency. “We are still working to resolve many of these cases.”

Well, what do you expect from a government program that has the efficiency of the post office and the bedside manner of the DMV?

There were stories last year warning that physician availability under Covered California policies would be a problem in rural areas. But in San Diego County, where I live, I’ve heard quite a few stories like this one from a woman who lives in Cardiff, an affluent coastal community:

“I was probably the biggest cheerleader for Obamacare in San Diego when I first signed up. I had some rather rare health issues recently, so I chose the best possible individual Covered California plan, the Blue Shield Platinum PPO, at over $1,000 per month. I checked their provider list carefully when I first signed up, and all my doctors and facilities were on their list.

“But, to my constant frustration, in the last few months all my previous doctors, specialists and medical facilities have not renewed their contracts with Blue Shield. I have to go to Los Angeles for one of my specialists because there are none on my plan in San Diego. The providers tell me that their reimbursement by Blue Shield is less than what they receive for basic Medicare.

“I am trapped in a horrible situation, yet I am not allowed to change insurance plans until next year. This is ‘bait and switch.’ That would be illegal if I were buying a car or some other major purchase.”

That is from a letter to the editor in Saturday’s U-T San Diego newspaper.

Polls consistently showed three-quarters of Americans were happy with their health care before the Affordable Care Act. This fact both explains the heavy opposition to the ACA and shows why previously insured people who sign up for Obamacare will be inclined to gripe about the product they’re getting.

If they liked their old health care, and this version costs more, they won’t be happy. Especially if they face hassles of any kind, like the woman from Cardiff.