Soft Launch” of Spanish Language Health Insurance Enrollment Option

"Soft Launch" of Spanish Language Health Insurance Enrollment Option
Consumers Have Two Weeks to Purchase Insurance in time for 2014

(Washington, D.C.) – This past weekend,  the Department of Health and Human Services announced the soft launch of the Spanish-language enrollment option under the Affordable Care Act. The Department is hoping to encourage enrollment through the site after January 1. The site was originally supposed to go live on October 1, but it was indefinitely delayed after the Administration was unable to build the site in time. Secretary Sebelius testified before Congress that when the extent of the problems with the English-language site became clear, available resources were redirected away from the Spanish site in order to launch the English site on time. 

Daniel Garza, Executive Director of The LIBRE Initiative released the following statement:

"There are just two weeks remaining before the December 23 deadline to purchase insurance in time for it to take effect on January 1, and the White House is only now making it possible for those who speak primarily Spanish to enroll online. And even worse, this site is now being rolled out under a 'soft launch,' which suggests that like Healthcare.gov, it still may not function properly. The Administration is even conceding that the real push for people to use the site is not until after January 1 – meaning that many may encounter coverage gaps.

This shows a stunning lack of respect for the Hispanic community, and a lack of concern for the uninsured – particularly those who may have lost their insurance because of the health care law. This is sure to hurt his already-lagging poll numbers among Latinos.  We at the LIBRE Initiative encourage the President to take concrete steps to make affordable care available quickly to those who lack it – not to offer politically-motivated half measures that leave many people out in the cold."

Learn more about "The Accountability Project" campaign and LIBRE's efforts to keep elected officials accountable for supporting the flawed Obamacare law that is causing families everywhere to lose their current health care plan and lose their full time jobs. They are elected to make the right decisions for the people – let's keep them accountable.

For interviews with a LIBRE representative, please contact: Judy Pino, 202-578-6424 or Brian Faughnan, 571-257-3309.