Health care enrollment numbers fell far below the expected outcome during the first month of website sign-ups, according to an initial report released Tuesday by the Wall Street Journal.
About 50,000 people signed up for private coverage or Medicaid since HealthCare.gov went live on Oct. 1, giving about 45 million uninsured Americans the opportunity to register for insurance plans. But the White House expected at least 500,000 individuals to sign up during the first month.
It is estimated that as few as 40,000 people enrolled in Obamacare during October, according to the report. The administration is looking to boost numbers by including individuals who have selected coverage but have not sent in their first payment.
Not a single person registered in Oregon, one of the states that chose to run its own health care enrollment, the Journal reports.
“It is systemic, so it really goes to the heart of the Democratic party’s argument…that government can do good things really well. If we can’t get this right, it really undermines that entire argument,” Ron Fournier, a reporter for the National Journal, said Tuesday on Morning Joe.
Many users have given the website negative reviews because of widespread glitches and believe President Obama has failed at dealing with the crisis. Additionally, serious security flaws that could lead to identity theft cause for concern.
Some Republicans, including former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, compared the Affordable Care Act to former President Richard Nixon’s Watergate Scandal.
Obama recently received his lowest approval rating–41%–of his first five terms in office, according to a new poll released by the Pew Research Center.
Joe Scarborough last week said the administration is “digging deeper every day” as the problems persist, which will leave “scar-tissue” for the Democratic party.
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