A new technical problem is preventing last-minute users from signing up on the government's health insurance website as traffic surges on deadline day, Reuters reported.
The Obama administration says technicians have identified an issue affecting consumers who are trying to create new accounts, according to Reuters.
As a result, new users will not be able to access the system for the time-being, Reuters reported. Technicians are working to fix the problem.
People with existing accounts can continue to work on their applications, according to Reuters. Currently, more than 100,000 people are using the system at the same time, a White House official reported.
About half the states are expanding Medicaid as the law intended, and interest in private insurance lags in more than a dozen states where public leaders oppose Obamacare or have failed to produce a working state-operated marketplace, Reuters reported.
Consumer costs next year could vary widely, with premiums likely to rise in the double-digit percentages in states with lower enrollment, according to Reuters.
Over the next year the administration plans to fully link its enrollment website, HealthCare.gov, with the insurance industry for sign-ups and payments, Reuters reported.
The administration still has no automated systems for confirming enrollment data, distributing subsidies or compensating insurers for unexpected losses, according to Reuters.
There are signs of a last-minute enrollment surge by younger adults for 2014 that could help keep the new online marketplaces viable for insurers, Reuters reported. Hospitals and doctor practices are also introducing changes to the way they provide healthcare in line with the law.
"The Affordable Care Act is here to stay. It's the framework that everybody in the healthcare industry is working within and developing their strategic plans around," said Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, who was a top White House adviser on healthcare during the law's development, according to Reuters.
"Even the opposition, the Republicans, recognize the ACA is the law of the land, and despite the rhetoric, actually accept it," he added.
