Management expert Jeff Zients — who will become the chief White House economic adviser next year — will take on a leadership role in efforts to repair the federal health insurance exchange website, HealthCare.gov, HHS has announced.
Mr. Zients has served as acting director at the Office of Management and Budget and as the nation's chief performance officer, according to HHS. He will provide advice, assessments and recommendations as part of a "tech surge" intended to address the numerous technical problems that have plagued the federal exchange site since its launch earlier this month.
The errors include people not being able to create accounts on HealthCare.gov, dysfunctional drop down tools and the site crashing due to high traffic, issues that have frustrated consumers and drawn criticism from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's opponents.
In addition to Mr. Zients, the Obama administration is addressing the problems by bringing in experts and specialists from within the government, federal contractors and the tech industry, including veterans from top Silicon Valley companies, according to an HHS news release. The agency has not disclosed names of specific companies and experts other than Mr. Zients.
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