Democratic senators on Thursday accused Republicans of beating a dead horse by continually bringing up Obamacare’s botched website launch in 2013.
Republicans responded that more information is needed on the cost to taxpayers for the rollout and to determine what happened.
“We can’t just simply brush it off and say this was a bad start but everything is going great now,” said Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind., during a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee.
Healthcare.gov, which is used by residents in 38 states to sign up for Obamacare plans, started in fall 2013.
Democrats conceded that the launch was a mess, with people unable to sign in or pick a plan. The administration had to extend the open enrollment period because of the technical problems.
“Everybody acknowledged that the first few months were botched,” said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore. “I don’t know how many times I can say it.”
Wyden noted that the administration acted quickly to address the website problems, an assertion backed up by administration officials at the hearing.
“There was the potential that it could be more chaotic,” said Erin Bliss, who works for the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General.
Democrats pointed to successes with Obamacare, noting that about 20 million people have gotten coverage when combining the exchange enrollment and the Medicaid expansion.
“The question is moving forward. How do we address the fact that over 20 million people have gotten healthcare coverage and saved people’s lives?” asked Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich.
But Republicans, who have pushed for repealing the law since its passage in 2010, argue that there are still major problems stemming from the rollout.
“Many of the problems have still not been entirely resolved and continue to cause frustration for consumers trying to obtain health insurance,” Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said in his opening statement.
