Congressional Hearing Witnesses Say the Exchanges are on Track for October 1st

The House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing yesterday on "PPACA Pulse Check: Part 2" examined whether the Administration was on track for the roll-out of the Exchanges on October 1st.

The hearing was well-attended by both members of Congress, their staff, and the regulated community. Witnesses included representatives from Equifax, Serco, CGI Federal, Leavitt Partners, American Staffing Association, and Pennsylvania Health Access Network.

As expected, the hearing was fairly partisan. Republican members of Congress predominantly focused on the Administration's delays in implementing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and whether the Exchanges would be ready in three weeks. They were concerned about the complexity of the Exchanges, whether the law would be implemented properly, and how fraud could be prevented. They also expressed concerns about the ACA reducing the amount of available jobs and reductions in the number of hours available to Americans with jobs.

Democratic members of Congress were also focused on the readiness of the Exchanges. There was concern that House Republicans were trying to intimidate and interfere with implementation of the ACA by investigating navigators (the organizations that help educate the public about the ACA) at a critical time. One member of Congress referred to the Republicans' actions as a "phishing expedition". They noted that investigations historically have occurred after the work has been performed -- and that there have been no allegations of wrongdoing. They also focused on the benefits of the ACA and the protections against fraud built into the system. They also stated that they expected the Exchanges to be ready, but noted that there would likely be a few "hiccups".

The witnesses that were involved with implementation of the Exchanges assured the Committee that they were all on schedule and would be ready on October 1st. However, one witness indicated that no states are completely ready yet and that he expected a rocky start. Other witnesses emphasized the positive impact of the law on Americans and expressed disappointment in the Governors who failed to created exchanges in their states. Representatives of employer groups expressed concern about the definition of full-time employees under the ACA and impact on jobs.

The overall take-away from the hearing was that the Exchanges appear to be on track, but that there may be a somewhat bumpy start.

The hearing and written testimony are available here.
Information about the investigation of navigators is available here and here.