The deadline for signing up for a health plan and avoiding any kind of fine has been extended to Dec. 17. But HealthCare.gov is still experiencing a lot of technical difficulties. There aren’t a lot of workarounds, but there is at least one thing you can try.
If you speak or read Spanish, consider trying the Spanish-language version of the website instead. The Tennessean reported that healthcare navigators are able to get through the Spanish language site easier because not as many people are using it. If you want to give that version of the HealthCare.gov website a try, you can go here.
In addition, Andy Slavitt, acting administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said on Twitter that if you can’t get through, you can leave an email and still get covered by January 1. Please note, however, that this account has not been verified by Twitter. The account states:
Unfortunately, he didn’t elaborate on where to send that email:
Five hours later, he finally answered, but his answer just left more questions:
The phone number he referenced is just the general healthcare.gov line, which asks for you to leave your phone number to get a callback. It doesn’t give an option for leaving an email. And the website doesn’t seem to be asking for your email to confirm you want coverage by January 1 either. It’s unclear if this advice is official or not.
A quick look at HealthCare.gov’s contact page does not provide an email address for sending questions or documents. The marketplace phone number is 1-888-318-2596, but people are reporting long wait times. If you know where to send an email that Slavitt referenced, please leave a comment and let us know.
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Are There Any Workarounds for Logging Into HealthCare.gov?