- Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius conducts an exclusive interview with CNN
- She says Obama didn't know of issues, despite companies' complaints, crash during test run
- Delaying the website's launch was "not really an option," Sebelius says
- The Obamacare website has been fraught with technical problems since its launch
(CNN) -- President Barack Obama didn't know about the problems with the Affordable Care Act's website -- despite complaints from insurance companies and the site's crashing during a test run -- until days into its now well-documented abysmal launch, the nation's health chief told CNN on Tuesday.
In an exclusive interview with CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius admitted Tuesday that there is significant concern in her department and the White House over the technical debacle surrounding the Obamacare website's rollout. The site was supposed to make it simple for people to search and sign-up for new health care policies starting on October 1, but instead it's been clunky and, at times, inoperable.
"We're not at all satisfied with the workings of the website," Sebelius said. "We want it to be smooth and easy and let consumers' compare plans."
Rough Obamacare rollout: 4 reasons why
Red flags missed on Obamacare site 
Holmes: Sebelius has got to go 
Obamacare issues known ahead of time? The secretary attributed some of the problems to "extremely high" volume, claiming nearly 20 million people have come to the Obamacare website in the first three weeks after its launched. Yet only a fraction of those have signed up for new health care policies.
It's not like no one saw this coming. A large number of insurance companies complained of problems ahead of the October 1 launch, and the website crashed during a test run although just a few hundred users were on it.
Despite the issues, the Obama administration went forward with the website.
"There are people in this country who have waited for decades for affordable health coverage for themselves and their families," said Sebelius, explaining why the launch wasn't pushed back. "...So waiting is not really an option."
Opinion: Obamacare a disaster that needs fixing
Republicans -- who, even before the website's launch, had made targeting the program a centerpiece of their agenda, even initially insisting they wouldn't vote to fund the entire government unless Obamacare was defunded or delayed -- have been vociferous critics of what's happened.
They claim that the website's woes show that Obama's administration and the federal government generally aren't capable of executing what the GOP says was an ill-advised program from the get-go.
"God only knows how much money they've spent, and it's a failure," Sen. Mitch McConnell, the leading Republican in the Senate, said Sunday on CBS. "The government isn't going to be able to get this job done correctly."
Obama: No 'sugarcoating' problems with health website
Several top Republicans -- including 2012 vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan -- have called on Sebelius herself to step down due to the program's problems.
Even the man whose name is forever tied to the health care reform has been critical, insisting Monday there's "no excuse for the problems" while at the same time insisting these should not equate to blanket condemnation of the Affordable Care Act as a whole.
"Nobody's madder than me about the website not working as well as it should," he said, "which means it's going to get fixed."
Watch Anderson Cooper 360° weeknights 10pm ET. For the latest from AC360° click here.
