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PODCAST: Healthcare.gov is fixed for consumers, but what about insurers?

The claim is that healthcare.gov is fixed to the point that it works for 9 out 10 consumers. The 30-year fixed-rate is a popular mortgage, but is it here to stay?

It’s far from “Mission Accomplished,” but in a conference call with reporters yesterday, federal officials said healthcare.gov — the website for people to buy insurance under the Affordable Care Act — is functional more than 90 percent of the time.

Many of those buying homes are utilizing the 30-year fixed-mortgage rate, which last week was averaging 4.29 percent. In the first half of 2013, 90 percent of new home loans were the 30-year. Why are they so popular?

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos debuted a promotional video on “60 Minutes” where a working prototype of the drone — a GPS-guided flying robot that looks a bit like a mini-barbecue with helicopter blades attached — delivers a package to a customer’s front-lawn. He said the goal would be to get orders to customers in as little as 30 minutes. Is it feasible? Maybe not. And that might not be the point.

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