SALEM — Before the state launched Cover Oregon, its online marketplace for health insurance, the executive director warned of likely glitches before the website was completely functional.

He was right.

The website went live Oct. 1, but more than a week later is still unable to fully process applications.

“We’re hoping day one is better than day two and day three is better than day four,” said Rocky King, executive director of Cover Oregon, before the website launch.

Today marks day 10.

“We were supposed to have full access, go in and enroll people,” said Robyn Anderson, a Cover Oregon certified agent in Bend. “So, that’s never been the case … It’s been a bit of a fiasco, to be honest.”

By the end of this week, users should be able to browse the website and get more than limited details on each plan being offered, according to Michael Cox, spokesman for Cover Oregon. Later this month, the website should be able to determine if applicants qualify for a federal tax credit.

More than 230,000 people have visited the website, spending an average of six minutes on the site.

As of Wednesday afternoon, community partners and licensed agents could help individuals create accounts but could not get much further in the process.

Kristine Akenson, with High Desert Insurance, in Bend, is also a certified agent trained to help people enroll. Right now, she’s taking down names and numbers and plans to call people back.

“If you and I were talking, to get you signed up, I can put in your basic information and then we would have to do a paper application,” Akenson said.

Paper applications can take up to 45 days to process.

“I guess people can do that, but it makes more sense to hold tight,” she said.

So far, there are eight different approved carriers in Deschutes County. Each one offers a variety of plans. The carriers are Bridgespan, Oregon’s Health Co-op, Health Republic, Lifewise, Moda, PacificSource, Providence and Trillium.

Akenson recommends clients visit the website — www.CoverOregon.com — to get a basic sense of what kind of plans they might be interested in. And, she said, it’s useful when clients have already checked with their provider to see which networks their preferred providers are in.

Right now, she said, overall, the process continues to be a “waiting game.”

“Hopefully by next week, we’ll have a completely different answer,” when people call, she said.

The plans have been divided into tiers, from bronze to gold. The terms are meant to help consumers gain an idea of the value of the plan; bronze, for instance, costs less than silver, but covers less of the overall medical costs.

But key to knowing which plan consumers might choose is determining whether they qualify for a federal tax subsidy. A calculator on the Cover Oregon website can help individuals determine eligibility. But it won’t be until later this month that insurance agents and community partners can say with certainty the cost of a plan and fully enroll individuals.

Each plan must cover essential benefits, from doctor visits to hospital stays. No one with a pre-existing condition can be denied.

To get coverage by Jan. 1, clients must sign up by mid-December. Enrollment ends March 31.

Individual health plans approved for Central Oregon

The Oregon Insurance Division has approved rates for insurers that will offer health insurance plans that start Jan. 1. The charts below show examples of approved monthly premiums for individual coverage that is expected to be offered through Cover Oregon, the state’s health insurance exchange. The sample rates are divided into standard gold, silver and bronze options — “standard” meaning that each plan’s benefits are the same from one company to the next. Subsidies may be available to help you pay for the premiums.

Each insurer submitted a variety of plans for 2014. Some insurers pulled out of the marketplace after the state agency approved rates that would have been significantly lower than what the companies had proposed. The insurers that are expected to offer plans through the Cover Oregon exchange in a wide swath of the state that includes Central Oregon are charted below.