The White House Monday is going directly after the couch-sitting, video-game-playing consumer in an effort to boost Obamacare sign-ups before an enrollment deadline later this week. The Obama administration recruited Shaquille O’Neal, retired NBA center, to play point for the first-ever “White House Competitive Gaming Event”. Its message: “Gamers, like everyone, deserve high-quality health care coverage.”
The competition is scheduled to stream live at 4 p.m. ET on Twitch.tv, an Amazon platform aimed at video gamers, particularly eSports participants. The White House says that “millions of millennials remain uninsured,” and Monday’s competition is another effort to raise awareness of the coverage available. According to research, millions of individuals tune in to eSports competitions as viewers.
The effort is part of a larger push by Healthcare.gov to reach young people. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced new media partnerships in September, including Twitch. CMS said:
