It's been a seriously rough road for Obamacare. The president's biggest accomplishment has been mercilessly mocked by both sides of the congressional aisle, and many of the critics have valid points. Despite pretty clear evidence that
many uninsured people are receiving health insurance thanks to the program, the fact remains that many thousands of people couldn't sign up due to technical difficulties on the website.
Well, if you were one of those unfortunate souls who ran into a hot mess on healthcare.gov, you're officially in luck. The White House announced today they are extending the open-enrollment period for 2014 coverage by an additional month. Originally, the hard deadline was slated for this Monday (March 31), but if you can prove that technical issues prevented you from signing up, you'll have until the end of April to finish the application process.
And, even if you've just been procrastinating on getting covered, it turns out the Monday end date might not be as firm as we've been led to believe. Further comments from administration officials suggest that as long as you're registered on the website as "in line" by March 31, whether or not you've completed your application, you'll still be able to receive coverage this year.
We're happy the White House is addressing the issues many of us have faced with the Affordable Care Act — and, honestly, as far as we're concerned, any move that results in more Americans getting insured is kind of a no-brainer. So, if you're still holding out, consider this a bit of a nudge to sign up and get covered. (The New York Times)