CMS has selected a new contractor, consulting firm Accenture, to oversee maintenance of the federal health insurance exchange site, HealthCare.gov, according to a report from The Hill.
Federal officials decided to replace the original head contractor, IT company CGI Federal, following the federal exchange site's glitch-ridden rollout, according to the report. Accenture has agreed to a year-long contract worth at least $90 million.
Since its launch this past October, HealthCare.gov has experienced numerous technical issues. The site's functionality has improved with repair efforts, and it could support 83,000 concurrent users as of Dec. 23. Still, CGI has come under fire for its part in the bumpy rollout process.
A Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee investigation released a report last month that showed CGI was assessed by the Department of Labor for $1.7 million in wage and safety penalties from 2007 to 2012. CGI was also cited for 13 wage and safety violations during that time period, according to the report. Additionally, Vermont and Massachusetts officials have withheld payments to CGI for constructing less than satisfactory websites for their state-based exchanges.
Earlier this year, CGI officials testified before the House Energy and Commerce Committeeabout the federal exchange site's glitch-ridden rollout. CGI and other contractors that testified told lawmakers the site wasn't tested enough before its launch.
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