Obama administration delays penalties for Obamacare sign-up

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius arrives in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington for and event with President Barack Obama on the initial rollout of the health care overhaul. As the public face of President Barack Obama’s signature health care program, Sebelius has become the target for attacks over its botched rollout. Republicans want her to resign and even some Democrats - while not mentioning her name - say someone needs to be fired.

President Barack Obama and administration officials are not giving up on the Affordable Care Act despite its rocky rollout that has furthered public apprehension about the comprehensive health care reform law, but they are giving up on one thing: the law’s mandate deadline for insurance coverage.

Health and Human Services officials said late Monday Americans without health insurance would have until March 31, rather than Feb. 15, to enroll in coverage before incurring a penalty. The enrollment mandate is meant to encourage young, healthy applicants into the insurance markets to lower the premium costs for the broader range of enrollees. It is one of of the law’s most controversial aspects, one loathed by conservatives who see it as government overreach.

But after the failed debut of healthcare.gov, the website intended to be a one-stop shop for comparing policies and signing up for coverage, and the subsequent political beating the administration has taken, the administration announced the deadline change.

In guidance announced Monday night, HHS “has determined that it would be unfair to require individuals in this situation to make a [penalty] payment.”

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White House spokesman Jay Carney recently hinted at a potential delay after he noted there was a “disconnect” between the website glitches and looming penalties. “There’s no question that there’s a disconnect between open enrollment and the individual responsibility timeframes in the first year only,” Carney said at an Oct. 21 press briefing. “And those are going to be addressed.”

Republicans have relished the political ramifications of the website failings, using it as an example to justify their opposition to Obamacare. Some lawmakers, such as Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., filed legislation that would require a delay in the individual mandate until all the technical issues are addressed. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and other top Democrats refuse to move such bills without White House approval, something not expected.

But Republicans, whose attempt to defund Obamacare led to an unpopular 16-game federal shutdown, are trying to regain the edge on the unpopular law by highlighting each one of the administration’s health care fumbles.