State Obamacare Director: 'We Could Crash and Burn and Have to Close It Down'

The federal government has had three and a half years to build its Obamacare insurance exchanges, yet just nine states will have fully functioning exchanges tomorrow upon Obamacare’s national grand opening, reports the Washington Post.

“With the launch deadline mere hours away, many are stumbling toward the finish line,” reports the Washington Post.

Obamacare implementation has been beset by myriad blown deadlines, technical failures, and security breaches. Last week, the Obama Administration announced that the government’s small business online component will not be ready on time and will have to be delayed until November. The Spanish version of the Obamacare exchanges has also been delayed at least a month. 

Oregon’s Obamacare exchange executive director Rocky King told the New York Times he does not know what to expect tomorrow. “I have no idea what this thing’s going to look like on Oct. 1. We could crash and burn and have to close it down.”

In Colorado, high online system error rates have forced officials to make individuals and business owners seeking Obamacare tax subsidies dial in by phone to see if they qualify. 

In the nation’s capital, the D.C. Obamacare announced last Wednesday its systems were unable to calculate the taxpayer-funded subsidies people can receive to purchase health insurance and that technical glitches were preventing them from determining Medicare eligibility.

Meanwhile, Obamacare’s impact on workers and businesses is already in full effect, as at least 313 employers have slashed thousands of jobs and thousands of worker hours. According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Obamacare is projected to cost employers $130 billion in Obamacare penalties.

Obamacare’s government exchanges open tomorrow.