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Articles by Tom Howell Jr.

Rep. Darrell E. Issa (center), California Republican, speaks with Obama administration technology officials as they prepare to testify before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee about failures with the HealthCare.gov website and problems implementing Obamacare, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2013. From left to right are Henry Chao, deputy chief information officer for Medicare and Medicaid services; Frank Baitman, deputy assistant secretary for information technology at the Department of Health and Human Services; Mr. Issa, chairman of the committee; Todd Park, chief technology officer at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; and Steve VanRoekel, chief information officer at the Office of Electronic Government in the Office of Management and Budget. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Only 106,000: Obamacare enrollment falls far short of goal

Only about 106,000 Americans enrolled in Obamacare's health care exchanges during the first month and fewer than 27,000 of those were from the federally run exchanges, the administration said Wednesday, finally releasing numbers showing just how rocky the rollout has been for President Obama's signature initiative.

November 13, 2013
**FILE** Sen. David Vitter, Louisiana Republican (Associated Press)

Sen. David Vitter uses pharmacy bill to challenge Obamacare

Sen. David Vitter wants to know if fellow lawmakers are skirting the letter of the law by exempting staff members from state-based Obamacare markets, and he is willing to hold up a pharmaceuticals bill that breezed through a key test vote late Tuesday to get his colleagues to fess up.

November 12, 2013
** FILE ** Former President Bill Clinton. (AP Photo/Zach Gibson)

Bill Clinton presses Obama to honor health insurance pledge

Former President Bill Clinton said Tuesday President Obama should find a way to keep his oft-repeated promise to the American public that if those who liked their present health insurance plan could keep it under Mr. Obama's new health care law.

November 12, 2013
** FILE ** Sen. Kay R. Hagan, North Carolina Democrat, is pictured after taking part in a re-enactment of the ceremonial Senate swearing-in on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009, in the Old Senate Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

Sen. Kay Hagan gets tough on flawed Obamacare rollout

Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan is calling on federal inspectors to investigate the "unacceptable" rollout of the federal Obamacare website to examine what went wrong, who was at fault and how much it is costing to fix the mess.

November 11, 2013
**FILE** President Barack Obama speaks at Temple Emanu-El on Nov. 6, 2013, in Dallas, as he promotes his health care law. (Associated Press/The Dallas Morning News, Louis DeLuca)

Just 3 percent of projected Obamacare enrollees have signed up: Study

Just 3 percent of those expected to eventually sign up for Obamacare's state-based health markets in a dozen states running their own markets have actually signed up so far, according to an analysis Monday from a health consultancy that predicted the pace will eventually pick up.

November 11, 2013
Rep. Fred Upton, Michigan Republican (Associated Press)

GOP set to jump on low Obamacare enrollment numbers

The Obama administration is set to release Obamacare enrollment data this week, figures that promise to be low and likely will feed further into Republican attempts to discredit the health care law.

November 10, 2013
FILE - In this Aug. 1, 2012 file photo, Jeffrey Zients testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. President Barack Obama is calling Zients to help correct problems with the new federal health care website. The White House says Zients will assist a team that is said to be working around the clock on the site, www.healthcare.gov. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

White House, Republicans spar over Obamacare record

The Obama administration said Friday it is seeing mixed progress in fixing the federal Obamacare website, as Republicans piled on criticism by saying taxpayers should get a refund for the broken $400 million Internet portal and that new numbers indicate that few people have enrolled in the insurance market for the District of Columbia tied to the health care law.

November 8, 2013
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2013, before the Senate Finance Committee hearing on the difficulties plaguing the implementation of the Affordable Care Act,. The massive failure at healthcare.gov website is getting new criticism for lack of proper cybersecurity protections. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Sebelius hits the road to defend Obamacare

Hoping to boost Obamacare's popularity despite its flawed rollout, President Obama's top health official will visit Atlanta on Friday to promote the health care law's benefits and meet with people who are educating Georgians about the reforms.

November 7, 2013
FILE - In this Oct. 30, 2013 file photo, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. Sebelius is returning to Capitol Hill for a fresh interrogation on the health care law, this time from senators with growing concerns about President Barack Obama's crowning legislative achievement. Sebelius was due to face questions Wednesday from the Senate Finance Committee. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci, File)

Sebelius apologizes, but says Obamacare delay is not an option

President Obama's top health official told the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday she is responsible for the disastrous rollout of the Obamacare markets and that early enrollment numbers "are going to be very low," but ruled out delays to the law because sick Americans are relying on the reforms.

November 6, 2013
Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner testifies Tuesday before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee about problems with the rollout of Obamacare. Committee Republicans have emphasized coverage cancellations and increased costs while raising questions about cybersecurity for HealthCare.gov. (Associated Press)

Point person on Obamacare website assures senators on code, security

President Obama's point person in implementing the new health care law assured senators Tuesday that the federal Obamacare website is salvageable and secure, even as her agency acknowledged it had to fix software code after a man in North Carolina reported he stumbled upon another man's personal information.

November 5, 2013
Sen. Tom Harkin, chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, greets Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner on Capitol Hill in Washington on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2013, prior to her testimony before the committee on problems with the debut of the Affordable Care Act. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Obamacare official: Bugs can be fixed

Marilyn Tavenner, President Obama's point woman in implementing the new health care law, told Congress on Tuesday the new health care law is salvageable and that repairs to the federal Obamacare website will coincide with an expected rush of enrollees by early December, even as GOP lawmakers declare Obamacare a failure.

November 5, 2013
President Barack Obama speaks at an Organizing for Action event in Washington, Monday, Nov. 4, 2013. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Problems and excuses mount for Obamacare

The systemwide defects in Obamacare mounted Monday, from compounding enrollment problems to soaring insurance cancellations to breaches of privacy, as the Obama administration struggled to contain the political damage and repair its laughingstock health care website.

November 4, 2013
** FILE ** Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear makes his victory speech during a election-night rally in Frankfort, Ky., on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2011. (AP Photo/John Flavell)

Kentucky Obamacare plan faces problems

Kentucky has been held up as one of the success stories of Obamacare, with its state-run exchanges running well and signing up thousands for health coverage.

November 4, 2013