The CMS has put off plans to switch to Hewlett-Packard Co. as the lead Web hosting vendor for HealthCare.gov. Instead, it's extended its contract with Verizon Communications' Terremark Worldwide subsidiary for the role. HP and one of its subcontractors will instead serve in supporting roles.
This is the latest contract extension CMS has given to HealthCare.gov vendors including Accenture, Quality Software Services Inc. (QSSI) and WebMD.
But unlike the other contract extensions, in which the CMS indicated there were no apparent successors waiting in the wings, it made clear in its Terremark notice that it had intended to transition to Hewlett-Packard, but did not have sufficient time to make the changeover before open enrollment begins Nov. 15. The agency reaffirmed that it still plans to switch to HP for website hosting at some point in the future.
In the meantime, HP and its subcontractor Amazon Web Services will serve supporting roles to Terremark, according to an agency spokeswoman.
“Our first priority is to ensure that millions more consumers will be able to enroll in quality, affordable coverage during the next open enrollment period. Based on our lessons learned, we have instituted a plan to better manage peak traffic, while providing greater flexibility and scalability within the system,” the spokeswoman said. “To achieve this and to accommodate the growing needs of consumers, we have decided to use three data cloud services, assigning each with specific responsibilities and measurable deliverables.”
HP will be used for SHOP, agents and brokers, staging and other test environments for the marketplace, and serving as an alternate site to the main system. Amazon Web Services, a subcontractor to HP, will be used for new elements of marketplace 2.0, which will serve the majority of new users to site and Verizon will continue to support returning members and more complex new members.
Terremark's original contract, which was scheduled to end this month, will now be extended through March 31, 2015. The extension is worth $15 million.
Representatives from both Verizon and HP referred requests for comment to the CMS.
Follow Virgil Dickson on Twitter: @MHvdickson
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