Confused uninsured people thought ObamaCare meant getting microchip implants
Istvan Bara /Hulton Archive, Getty Images


One of the Obama administration's biggest obstacles to getting people enrolled in new health insurance plans was the daunting educational outreach effort necessary to inform people of what in the heck ObamaCare even was. With such a massive overhaul of the nation's health care system, there was bound to be mass confusion, misinformation, and plain old ignorance. And indeed, even late last month, six in ten uninsured adults didn't even know the deadline to enroll in ObamaCare was only a few days away; only two-thirds knew the Affordable Care Act required people to get insurance or face a fine.
Spurred on by politically-motivated counter-narratives, the sheer extent of the confusion was incredible. (Remember those dreaded, though fictional, death panels?) Yet a weekend feature from The New York Times exploring how the swirling uncertainty suppressed ObamaCare participation among the poor offers one of the most astounding tidbits to date: Some poor people believed signing up for ObamaCare involved having microchips implanted in their bodies, like something out of a dystopian science fiction film.
Despite a terrible rollout, ObamaCare still managed to crack its 7 million enrollment goal by April 1. That said, it's worth wondering if enrollments would have climbed even higher had there not been so much confusion surrounding the health care law.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.
-
Marisa Silver’s 6 favorite books that capture a lifetime
Feature The author recommends works by John Williams, Ian McEwan, and more
-
Book reviews: ‘We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution’ and ‘Will There Ever Be Another You’
Feature The many attempts to amend the U.S. Constitution and Patricia Lockwood’s struggle with long Covid
-
Philadelphia’s Calder Gardens
Feature A permanent new museum
-
FDA OKs generic abortion pill, riling the right
Speed Read The drug in question is a generic version of mifepristone, used to carry out two-thirds of US abortions
-
RFK Jr. vaccine panel advises restricting MMRV shot
Speed Read The committee voted to restrict access to a childhood vaccine against chickenpox
-
Texas declares end to measles outbreak
Speed Read The vaccine-preventable disease is still spreading in neighboring states, Mexico and Canada
-
RFK Jr. shuts down mRNA vaccine funding at agency
Speed Read The decision canceled or modified 22 projects, primarily for work on vaccines and therapeutics for respiratory viruses
-
Measles cases surge to 33-year high
Speed Read The infection was declared eliminated from the US in 2000 but has seen a resurgence amid vaccine hesitancy
-
Kennedy's vaccine panel signals skepticism, change
Speed Read RFK Jr.'s new vaccine advisory board intends to make changes to the decades-old US immunization system
-
Kennedy ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory panel
speed read Health Secretary RFK Jr. is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who has criticized the panel of experts
-
RFK Jr. scraps Covid shots for pregnant women, kids
Speed Read The Health Secretary announced a policy change without informing CDC officials