It’s #Obamacare enrollment deadline day. Updated

**Posted by Phineas

"Obamacare has arrived"
“Obamacare has arrived”

This is it, folks! (Well, maybe. Kinda. See below.) This is the day by which all of you who have no insurance, whether you couldn’t afford it, chose as a free human being not to buy it, or had it ripped away from you by Nanny State (in the form of the Democratic Party (1) and their Affordable Care Act (2)), had to enroll and pay for a government-approved plan — with higher premiums, larger deductibles, bigger co-pays, services you didn’t want or need, and smaller provider networks that may not include your doctor.

And what does America think on this most momentous of days?

They ain’t happy.

A new poll finds support for Obamacare slumping to an all-time low as the administration hits its deadline to register consumers for coverage on Jan. 1.

According to a CNN/ORC International survey released Monday, 35 percent say they support President Obama’s signature domestic achievement, a drop of 5 points in under a month. Nearly two-thirds, at 62 percent, say they oppose the health law, a rise of 4 points since November.

(…)

The push to boost low enrollment figures has targeted young people and women, but the new CNN poll finds that more women now oppose the health care law. Sixty percent of women have a negative view of Obamacare, up from 54 percent in November.

(…)

The survey finds that 63 percent believe the law will cost them more for their health care, with just 7 percent saying the amount they pay for medical care will drop. Nearly 3 in 10 say it will not change.

Overall, 42 percent say they will be personally worse off and 16 percent say they will be better off under Obamacare. Forty percent say the law will have no effect.

For some reason, a majority think they’ll be able to keep their physicians and provider network. Expect that to change as people start trying to see their physicians in the new year.

The number for women is almost staggering, since that tends to be the demographic that most closely watches healthcare issues and has been generally supportive of doing something to spread the safety net, if not particularly an ACA-style solution. But, if numbers among women are cratering like that… Well, I hope Obama ordered a double mai-tai in Hawaii.

On a more personal note, I can finally say I know someone harmed by this abomination of a law. While I won’t mention his name or specific circumstances, out of respect for his privacy, I learned last night that an acquaintance suffering from a serious chronic condition only found out yesterday that his insurance, which he was satisfied with, is being canceled as of January 1st. He now has to deal with Covered California’s site, choose a plan, enroll, and pay (How?) by the end of the day today. And hope against hope he can find a plan he can afford that gives him anywhere near the coverage he has today. Assuming his application doesn’t get screwed up somewhere along the line. (3)

Great work, Democrats! What a wonderful present for the people for this Christmas season! I’m sure many millions will remember what you’ve done forΒ to them, come November, 2014.

BREAKING: Obama rides to the rescue!

While writing this, I saw that the administration of President Peron Obama has extended –without congressional authority– the deadline for enrolling in Obamacare insurance.

By a whole 24 hours:

At midnight Monday, the official deadline arrives for Americans to sign up through the new federal health insurance exchange for health plans that begin Jan. 1. But, without any public announcement, Obama administration officials have changed the rules so that people will have an extra day to enroll, according to two individuals with knowledge of the switch.

Over the weekend, government officials and outside IT contractors working on the online marketplace’s computer system made a software change that automatically gives people a Jan. 1 start date for their coverage as long as they enroll by 11:59 p.m. Christmas Eve.

Note that the changes were made secretly, because they were afraid their “repaired” site might crash under the load of last-minute enrollments. But they didn’t want to tell anyone that, lest people delay further. And, oh yeah, it’s another in the long, lengthening string of unilateral changes, exceptions, and waivers the administration has made to deal with the never-ending problems Obamacare is creating.

via Eliana Johnson

RELATED: Jim Geraghty surveys the latest bad news for Obamacare apologists. Yuval Levin says the administration is pounding on the panic button. An editorial from last summer, but still spot-on: Obamacare is a 19th century solution to a 21st century problem.

UPDATE: Trying to out-Scrooge Scrooge,Β California has refusedΒ to abide by the administration’s extension of the deadline:

California’s health insurance exchange is holding firm to its enrollment deadline today for customers who want coverage beginning at the start of the year, officials said Monday.

Earlier in the day, the White House announced the federal deadline was being delayed 24 hours — from 11:59 p.m. Monday to 11:59 p.m. Tuesday. Officials said they made the move for Healthcare.gov customers as part of a good-faith effort to ensure those who needed coverage by Jan. 1 would be able to log-in and sign up.

California, which operates its own health insurance exchange, said customers must act Monday.

They’ll cut you a little slack if you start late today and take into the wee hours tomorrow to finish, so no whining! On the payment question, you have until January 6th for coverage beginning January 1st. If you can figure out how to pay, that is…

Footnotes:
(1) Remember, not a single Republican voted for this mess, and we’ve voted repeatedly to repeal it and bury its staked corpse at a crossroads at midnight.
(2) George Orwell! Paging Mr. George Orwell!
(3) Fingers crossed tightly. He’s a very nice guy, and I can only imagine what he’s going through today.

(Crossposted at Public Secrets)

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