Accenture To Replace CGI Federal Running Obamacare Site

By Greg Henderson / NPR

Published January 11, 2014 at 1:51 PM PST

This story was published more than 10 years ago.

Updated 8:50 p.m.

The main contractor behind the embattled Affordable Care Act enrollment site, which suffered major technological issues after its Oct. 1 debut, will be replaced early this year.

Accenture will replace CGI Federal, the IT contractor that built HealthCare.gov, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced Saturday. CGI Federal's contract expires on Feb. 28.

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The Washington Postreports:

"Accenture, one of the world's largest consulting firms, has extensive experience with computer systems on the state level and built California's large new health-insurance exchange. But it has not done substantial work on any Health and Human Services Department program.

"The administration's decision to end the contract with CGI reflects lingering unease over the performance of HealthCare.gov even as officials have touted recent improvements and the rising numbers of Americans who have used the marketplace to sign up for health coverage that took effect Jan. 1."

NPR's Scott Horsley reported Friday that hundreds of CGI Federal's employees continued to work on the site even after a different company, QSSI, was put in charge of the project in late October.