It has been reported that our government spent $500M on the enrollment website programming. It also has been reported that the programming was done by a Canadian company. I guess they couldn't find an American company that could screw it up this bad. Of course, I can't say whether the problems were caused by the contractors or the project management team in Health and Human Services. In any case, this software roll out has come after a multi-year development effort. I wonder what the original budget was. Was the original quotation for $500M, or did mismanagement create opportunities for the contractor to increase the billings? Was there scope creep? Did the original request for quote provide a clear definition of the desired operation of the software? Have the bureaucrats added a bunch of features at the last minute?
When private companies roll out a website, do they have problems like this? Rarely. Do they generally spend $500M for their website design and information systems? I doubt it. Does this Obamacare website have any earth shaking innovations that held things up? Not likely -- at least, unless you consider making the website virtually impossible to figure out, redundant, slow, and riddled with problems an innovative strategy.
Contrast this MessAPolitico with a private sector website introduction. The private sector would generally be finished on-time, fully tested for security and ease of use. The private company would want to make their website as easy to use and customer friendly as possible. After all, they are competing with other companies, and a user friendly website might entice some customers away from the competition. If the private company already had your name, address, and financial information, they would likely share the data between divisions and allow you to streamline the process of buying their products.
Everyone knows that the government has all of our data in multiple databases. Of course, the IRS has our name, address, income, etc. stored under your social security number. They see your tax payments sent in by your employer or by you quarterly. If you already receive welfare, food stamps/SNAP, Medicaid, Medicare, VA benefits, etc., why can't the data be transferred across? Better yet, why can't all government entities share one database that contains all of the information they need when you sign up for any program?
The simple answer is that bureaucracies just don't work that way. Why should they? They have no interest in efficiency, because profits aren't necessary. They are spending tax dollars, not their own investment. The boss doesn't see you spending his money on some wasted efforts. Duplication of effort means more jobs. Making a project long and complex means job security. Why fix a problem when that might eliminate the need for a department and jobs.
Look at the war on poverty that was started with LBJ in the early 1960's. That war has been fought for about 50 years, and today there are more people living in poverty than ever. When did the war on drugs begin, and has it been won? If the military had as much trouble winning wars as these government agencies, we would still be fighting the revolutionary war.
So, this inept government of ours is running our health care now. How great is that? Health care is so important to all of us. Eventually, all of us will need it. The government is taking the incentive to excel away from our health care providers. The cost of medical training is higher than ever, yet providers are being squeezed financially with stifling regulations when the graduate and enter the workforce. Medical device innovators are being punished with higher taxes that will eventually run them out of the country. We can look forward to having lawyers decide for us and our doctors about what health care is right for us.
I think this health care MessAPolitico was intended to bring health care to some tens of millions of people that had no insurance. I'm not really sure anymore, but it seems that I was told everyone has the "right" to health care. There was a lot of debate about how many Americans were uninsured and whether they were truly Americans or illegal aliens. However, I keep hearing reports that we haven't managed to insure all of these folks AND a bunch of other Americans have now lost their health care as a result of the PPACA. Some employers have cut back employees hours because they don't want to pay the rising costs for everyone. Others are electing to pay the tax/fine and drop employee coverage. Small companies are avoiding the high costs by not hiring.
There is an important lesson here. Never look to the government for improvements in efficiency or effectiveness. Don't look to the government to solve problems. The only thing we should ever ask of government is to get out of the way.
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