Local experts on the Affordable Care Act expect this year's open enrollment period to run a bit smoother.

"We really think this year is going to be much better," Brenda Jackson, the county's director of Social Services, said at a Tuesday night panel discussion on the health law hosted by the Cumberland County Library. "I think last year was a little frustrating for folks trying to navigate this process."

Jackson said she feels that this year there might be more people enrolling because of the penalty for not having health coverage, which will increase from $95 to $325 per person. In addition, she said, Medicaid enrollment will be easier because the technical glitches that plagued both the federal health insurance marketplace and the state's benefit tracking system will be cleared up.

In North Carolina, hundreds of thousands of residents were left without coverage under the law because the state refused to expand Medicaid. Judy Klinck, executive director of Better Health, said that leaves many uninsured people stuck seeking care in the emergency rooms or urgent care facilities, and then with very limited options for additional treatment once the emergency has been stabilized. Organizations such as The CARE Clinic, Stedman-Wade Health Services can provide primary care for the uninsured, she said.

Moderator Tim White, opinion editor for The Fayetteville Observer, asked the panelists if the Affordable Care Act or some other model would be the ideal way to expand health coverage.

Janel Lewis, a certified application counselor with Stedman-Wade Health Services, said it's too early to pass judgment on the Affordable Care Act. There are still many more people who did not sign up for coverage because they didn't know they could get financial assistance, she said.

"We did not reach everyone," she said of local outreach efforts, "but we are going to ramp up with this upcoming (enrollment period)."

Like any system, Jackson said, the Affordable Care Act needs to be reevaluated.

"I think the issue with the Affordable Care Act is that it's not user-friendly."

She said the law has gotten caught in a political tug-of-war that has helped foster misinformation and complicated trust among consumers.

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Health care enrollment expected to be easier this year