Marilyn Tavenner, the administrator for the Centers for Medicaid & Medicaid Services that oversaw the office creating healthcare.gov, apologized in her opening statement on Capitol Hill Tuesday for the glitches that have plagued the website and turned into a national punchline:
"I want to apologize to you that the website has not worked as well as it should," she said. "I want to assure that you healthcare.gov can and will be fixed, and we are working around the clock to deliver the shopping experience that you deserve ... We know that the consumer experience has been frustrating for many Americans. Some have had trouble creating accounts and logging into the site, while others have received confusing error messages or had to wait for slow response times. This initial experience has not lived up to our expectations or the expectations of the American people and it is not acceptable."