The catastrophe rolls on.
In the final pages of a law enacted in 2012, the Legislature spelled out a safety valve the Shumlin administration could use if the online health insurance marketplace then under development failed to operate as intended when it opened for business in 2013.
Vermont’s new insurance marketplace, like its federal counterpart, had a rocky launch Oct. 1 and remains plagued with glitches.
After trying to remain upbeat despite a month of malfunctions, Gov. Peter Shumlin last week invoked the legal safety mechanism that will give thousands of Vermonters the option to temporarily bypass Vermont Health Connect to obtain health insurance coverage for 2014.
“The purpose of Vermont Health Connect is to simplify the process of buying insurance for Vermonters,” Shumlin said in a statement. However, the promised simplification has been illusive, because the website has to yet to function fully or consistently.
“I won’t tolerate a situation where Vermonters go into the holiday season worried and confused by their health care options come Jan. 1. That is simply unacceptable,” Shumlin said. “I am taking steps to ensure that won’t happen. While thousands of Vermonters have signed up for coverage through Vermont Health Connect, many others have been frustrated by technology glitches.
“It is possible those technology errors will be fixed in a matter of weeks,” he continued, “but multiple missed deadlines and failed technology fixes in my judgment require us to implement this plan.”
Using Section 41a of the 2012 health care law, the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation will allow individuals who buy their own insurance and small employers to extend their current coverage plans until March 31, despite Dec. 31 expiration dates.