"Government watchdog Judicial Watch announced a lawsuit Tuesday morning against the Department of Health and Human Services after officials failed to comply with a November 8, 2013 Freedom of Information Act Request about Obamacare navigators. The suit was filed on March 27, 2014, but was publicly revealed today.
According to Health and Human Services 50,000 people have been hired as navigators to help Americans enroll in Obamacare through federal or state exchanges. Since navigators were hired, HHS has failed to provide a concrete record of what processes navigators must go through before being qualified to handle sensitive information of potential Obamacare enrollees. Judicial Watch is suing for information about navigator qualifications, background checks and records about the navigator program. From the November FOIA:
-Any and all records concerning, regarding, or related to contracts awarded to private entities to provide navigators to assist individuals obtaining health insurance under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; and
-Any and all records concerning, regarding, or related to federal requirements for the above-mentioned navigators, including but not limited to background checks and qualifications.
“The Obamacare navigator program seems as corrupt as any Chicago patronage operation – and is a danger to the privacy of millions of Americans who are participating in Obamacare,” Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said in a statement. “The use of Obamacare navigators and the Healthcare.gov web site should come with consumer warnings. The Obama administration’s illegal secrecy about these Obamacare navigators should make Americans very nervous." - Corrupt as Chicago: Judicial Watch Sues HHS for Obamacare Navigator Records, townhall.com, 04/22/2014
Link to the entire article appears below:
http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2014/04/22/judicial-watch-sues-hhs-for-obamacare-navigator-records-n1827493?utm_source=thdailypm&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl_pm
“At least 43 convicted criminals are working as Obamacare navigators in California, including three individuals with records of significant financial crimes.
Although some of the offenses are decades old, and although convicted criminals account for only 1 percent of the 3,729 certified enrollment counselors in the state, Californians still have good cause to be concerned about their privacy.”
“Limited statistics released by Covered California — the state’s new health-insurance exchange — showed that one navigator has repeat forgery offenses — one in 1982, then another in 1994, with a burglary in between. Another had two forgery convictions in 1988, in addition to a domestic-violence charge a decade later. Another committed welfare fraud in 1999 and had shoplifted on at least two prior occasions. Since 2000, individuals now working as navigators have committed crimes including child abuse, battery, petty theft, and evading a police officer. At least seven navigators have multiple convictions. The information released covered only certified enrollment counselors, one of the three types of navigators working in California.” - California’s Obamacare Scandal, NRO, 01/29/2014
Link to the entire article appears below:
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/369695/californias-obamacare-scandal-jillian-kay-melchior
"WASHINGTON – The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee today released a new staff report on the Obama Administration’s Navigator and Assister program in conjunction with today’s field hearing in Dallas, Texas. The report explains how the Administration’s serious mismanagement of these outreach programs exposes Americans to fraud and poses a threat to the safety of consumers’ personal information.
The Navigator program was created by ObamaCare as an outreach program to encourage and facilitate enrollment in health insurance exchanges. The Assister program was created by the Administration with dubious legal authority as a way around ObamaCare’s clear statutory prohibition on using federal exchange establishment funds on Navigators.
Months before the launch of ObamaCare on October 1, the Oversight Committee initiated an investigation into potential problems with the Navigator and Assister program. The Committee released a preliminary staff report in September that highlighted the significant risks for fraud, abuse, and misinformation due to the lack of background checks, inadequate training standards, and weak Administration oversight plan for Navigators and Assisters.
The new report makes clear that U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials lacked a contingency plan for the Navigator and Assister program after HealthCare.gov failed, leaving consumers open to the risk of identity theft due to confusion surrounding enrollment for health exchanges."
Link to the entire Congressional report appears below:
http://oversight.house.gov/release/oversight-report-obamacare-navigator-program-reveals-mismanagement-lax-oversight/
“The Obama administration added millions of dollars to ObamaCare's enrollment push Thursday, a surprise move designed to help bolster participation in new insurance plans.
The Health and Human Services Department (HHS) announced $67 million in funding for “navigators,” which are people and community groups who will help people make sense of their options under the healthcare law.
HHS had initially said navigators would receive $54 million in grants, but officials said they pulled an extra $13 million from the healthcare law’s prevention fund to help broaden the reach of the program.
“Navigators will be among the many resources available to help consumers understand their coverage options in the marketplace,” HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a press release. “A network of volunteers on the ground in every state — health care providers, business leaders, faith leaders, community groups, advocates, and local elected officials — can help spread the word and encourage their neighbors to get enrolled.”
All told, more than 100 organizations in 34 states received grants on Thursday.
The list of navigators includes a host of healthcare networks and universities, which will add ObamaCare education to existing programs that offer healthcare counseling to low-income families.
Some community organizations will use the money to print brochures and organize informational forums. Other recipients will promote enrollment through food banks and religious centers.” - Officials add millions of dollars to ObamaCare enrollment drive, the hill.com, 08/15/2013
Link to the entire article appears below:
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/317301-hhs-redirects-millions-of-dollars-to-obamacare-enrollment-drive
Note: what exactly is a “navigator“?
“Tens of thousands of health care professionals, union workers and community activists hired as "navigators" to help Americans choose Obamacare options starting Oct. 1 could earn $20 an hour or more, according to new regulations issued Wednesday.
The 63-page rule covering navigators, drawn up by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, also said the government will provide free translators for those not fluent in English -- no matter what their native language is.
"The proposed requirements would also include that such entities and individuals provide consumers with information and assistance in the consumer's preferred language, at no cost to the consumer, which would include oral interpretation of non-English languages and the translation of written documents in non-English languages when necessary to ensure meaningful access," said the regulations.
The rules also addressed conflict of interest and other potential issues that navigators could face as the public's first stop on the Obamacare trail.
It is still not clear how many navigators will be required. California, however, provides a hint. It wants 21,000.
That could be an expensive proposition. The proposed rules, now open for public comment, suggest an estimated pay of $20-$48 an hour.” - Tens of thousands Obamacare 'navigators' to be hired, Washington Examiner, 04/03/2013
Link to the entire article appears below:
http://washingtonexaminer.com/tens-of-thousands-obamacare-navigators-to-be-hired/article/2526167
