>> it's a new world. >> brave new world as someone wrote years ago. it's complicated. that's the name of your book. good to have you with us. >> that's it for us tonight. see you next time. >> good evening, everyone. welcome to al jazeera america. i'm john seigenthaler in new york. to tell the truth - another major gm recall. new safety questions, and charges of a cover up. tomorrow the c.e.o. faces congress. an hour left. the open enrol for obamacare ends at midnight. what happens after the deadline. we talk to tom dashel, former senate majority leader. >> outrage, heir of the dooupon fortune convicted of rape.

a judge is under fire for her decision. >> heads up. detecting earthquakes before you feel them. the early barning system before you feel them. we'll show you how it works. >> president obama's cornerstone for a second term is 59 minutes away from a critical point. the deadline to sign up is midnight tonight. enrolments began six months ago, it's been plagued by delays, misstep and smecs. getting on -- mistakes. getting on to the site could be challenging. this is vivian more as she signs up. if she doesn't, she faces tax penalti

penalties. we begin coverage with libby casey in washington. >> the website went down twice on monday, the first for scheduled maintenance at one in the morning. it was supposed to be down for three hours, it lasted until 9am. killing the website for crucial hours as americans got ready for the monday morning. it got back up and running. it went down again monday afternoon. this time the administration said because there was a big surge in people trying to get online, finding out about what kind of insurance they could get or sign up. if folks tried to use the phone and called, they got a phone message saying that because of the heavy volume it would be a long wait. >> americans could leave an email address and number and be contacted later and the white house pointed out as long as you made contact, you could follow up in the days ahead.

there was a social media push, which was frustrating for some as they watched and saw things on the internet, saw tweets saying "go online and sign up", and they weren't able to. it ranged from ellen degeneres to kerry washington and sports figures. house speaker john boehner led the republicans in decrying the website and the law and here is a statement he put out on monday: >> white house spokesman jay carney said it was up to people to go on and sign up. here is what he said in the briefing. >> people need to sign up for health insurance. they have a responsibility to do that. there is an opportunity to get quality affordable insurance, in many cases less than 100 bucks.

>> if people miss the deadline, they'll be penalized and pay a fine in january next year, and will miss out on getting enrolled through the affordable care act. the next time they can enrol is november. that is for insurance in 2015. >> at the bottom of the hour more on the deadline and what it means for healthcare in america. we'll talk to former majority senator leader. tom dashel. we meet a small business owner that says it's hurting his business. >> the scandal surrounding general motors, they are issuing another major recall involving 1.5 million cars. tomorrow the c.e.o. is in the hot seat as she testified at a congressional hearing.

richelle carey is here to talk about that. >> today's recall is to resplays power steering. tomorrow's senate hearing is about ignition switches. mary barra is meeting lawyers with 15 families of accident victims. it went well. >> you'll see... >> mary barra's opening statement - she is expected to tell the panel that prosecutors have free rein to go where the facts take them, regardless of the outcome. they are a dozen deaths and accidents linking to a faulty switch. according to a memo released on sunday. goerts knew the part had -- general motors knew the part had problems, before fatal accidents, before cars split apart.

the company did not issue a recall until 10 years later. 620,000 vehicles were recalled february 10th. by last friday the number rose to 2.2 million recalled vehicles. they were to replace switches jostled out of position, shutting off cars and stopping airbags from working. the memo says gm approved the part. sample testing of the ignition switch was below the specifications set by gm. gm says other top executives new nothing about the switches until january 31st of this year. the house senate and subcommittee wanted to know how it was possible. the national traffic administration declined to open a situation, even after receiving complaints and field reports. after the recall, an apology was

issued and a statement given: >> gm is feeling the heat from prosecutors, who are examining whether the company is liable for failing to disclose the problems with veegss. >> there's added pressure. gm's federal bailout protects the automaker. they will announce a vice president for global vehicle safety, a first for the company. their job will be to identify and resolve product safety issues. >> it will be tough. new developments out of the story. we continue to follow the shooting. protests against law enforcement

are intensifying. >> it was a showdown in albuquerque. what began as a peaceful protest against the city's police department turned violent. demonstrators clashed with officers in riot gear. they used tear gas to disperse the crowds. several were arrested. the mayor defended the action by the police saying they were attacked and used nonlethal force to protect themselves. the rally coming a week after the police fatally shot james boyd. a mentally ilhomeless man. the police called the shooting justified. police shot another man to death, after saying he opened fire on them. the man's family said he was unarmed. >> i saw the shot. >> since 2010 there has been 37

police shootings in albuquerque. 24 have been fatal. the justice department is looking into the incidents and tonight governor martin es is calling for calm: . >> now to the search for a malaysia airlines flight mh370 and it's a race against time now. an australian ship, with the u.s. navy blackbox detector joined the hunt. finding the black box flight recorder is key. its batteries will likely run out of power by the end of the week. >> in washington state the death toll climbing in the catastrophic mud slide. it stands at 24. the number of missing reduced to 22. search crews are making

progress. they finished a makeshift road to get across the field. we have more. >> as the search moves into a second week the focus is clear - find the people who are still missing. >> in some places the depth of the debris, mud and dirt is over 70 feet deep. in other places as little as 10 feet. it makes it difficult for us to get in there. >> highway 30 remains closed, a power ute ulty road has been oped. allowing emergency vehicles to access a debris field. for residents who are left are no viable road to travel on, frusts ration is building. >> right now we can't get to work, we have to go around, 150 miles out of our way. >> rather that make a 3 hour commute. steve bloom is staying put.

>> my boss said, "stay at home, we'll figure it out from there." i have friend that offered up a couch on the other side of the slide. i'm going to sit right-hand and do nothing. it's up in the air. >> for a community cut off from the country, it's more than a physical isolation. right now it is the - it's the equip essential source of grief. it's what everyone sees now is the mud slide. they see the loss of life, the pain and suffering that greets the anguish and exhaustion. people are exhausted. that sense of disaster is what is represented. until it's opened up. it will always be that way. >> some of the strain is eased. they are hoping for an expanded schedule. >> if they made it a little more time. it could help more people. there's a lot of people that

work at night that live here. >> while residents await the live lone to be open, they mourn their neighbours. >> we drive there every day, like clockwork, we are driving through there, oh, my god, what if we went through there and ha happened. wiped out. >> good weather on monday helped crews. the last couple of days steady rain. clear skies allowed crews to go into areas of the debris field. >> the fate of a convicted spy may hold the key to the middle east peace talks. arrested after passing documents to u.s. -- documents to israel. they are considering releasing them. >> tonight is the most crucial night for middle east peace

talks since president obama became president. if there is not a deal to release the palestine prisoners, talks could collapse. u.s., israel why and palestine officials are trying to reach agreement for the last 104 prisoners. if the prisoners are not released by noon eastern. the palestines will walk away from the talks. what does it mean? they'll go to the u.n., other international organizations and get recognition. that's what they agreed not to do while the talks were ongoing. screp -- secretary of state john kerry is trying to prevent the palestinians from walking away. john kerry is so desperate in the words of one u.s. official, that he has gone so far as talking about releasing early the american spy jonathan

pollard, an american jew who spied forest rail. the u.s. caught him and threw him in gaol. for the last 25 years, defence officials, c.i.a. said they would resign if pollard was released as part of negotiations with the israelis, that is what the u.s. is considering doing tonight. there has been no deal but two officials acknowledge that pollard is part of the mix, discussing with the u.s. railies, principals release aring pollard and talking about a freeze on settlements and the continuation of these talks, there's no guarantee that john kerry's offer has been accepted or the palestinians will accept what israel offers. if there's no deal, the talks will collapse. >> thank you nick. >> next - off the hook. the heir to a chemical fortune is convicted of rape, but serves

not a day in gaol. why the judge is defending the sentence. plus, early warning - before the earthquake hit, the system that gives you pressures sections to be safe.

>> a startling, controversial court case out of delaware. out in 2008, robert richard, heir to the du pont family fortune pleaded guilty to raping his 3-year-old daughter. he served no times, after a judge suspended an 8-year sentence, giving him probation.

the judge said richards would not fare well in a prison. the ruling has come to light. and the mother has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the children. we are joined by rooeba, attorney. give me your rehabilitation to this one. >> i almost fell out of my chair. these laws are enacted to protect children, and the rape of a child is a heinous act you can imagine. it's not any child, it was his child that was raped. he admitted to the rape and the judge was more concerned about his wellbeing. i don't understand it. >> what is that about? >> we saw it in of the texas case of a rich young man who was driving under the influence and killed four people, but did no gaol time. i can't help but imagine and think this is sending a message

that there's a 2-tear system, one for individuals who are wealthy or ones that are poor or they say than the wealthy ones getting off. >> what about the line that the defendant wouldn't fare well. >> absurd. gaol is not a hotel, it's not a resort. i don't think anyone fares well in gaol, it's not meant to be pleasurable, it's meant to be a form of punishment had a criminal act. he won't fair any better. he shouldn't be treated differently to anyone else. >> he pleaded guilty to a heinous crime - the rape of a 3-year-old, his 3-year-old daughter. when you talk about a 2-year system, we are talking about someone who is wealthy and has some power. house does that - when it comes

down to the criminal justice system, houds does it impact? >> it shouldn't impact it at all. >> in this case, it's not what is happening. >> the judge references the family background rather than focussing on the crime. the little girl has been traumatised, not only rape, but by her own father. it's a dangerous precedent to set for any jum, to establish that -- judge, to establish that wealthy people will be treated differently. >> what resource does the family have in. >> the mum files a civil lawsuit. it's how the criminal matter came to light as a result of civil matters child by the ex-wife. as it results to the criminal matter, make the attorney-general may look into it but it's probably a done dill

with respect to what is happening to him, it's about what will happen in the civil lawsuit. i expect the moth ir will make a large financial recovery and the little girl get the help she needs. >> other than that, is there any other way to turn the judge around. >> i think the attorney-general is looking into the sentencing. once someone is sentenced, we have double jeopardy, a plea entered, sentence meted out by the judge and overturning it will be difficult. >> thank you for your insight. great to talk to you again. >> now, turning to look at the impact on climate change. a new u.n. report says rising temperatures will affect what we eat, what we drink, where we live and something needs to be done about it now to avoid a catastrophe. >> the cruel irony of the study is the top polluters, china,

u.s., india cause the problems, but the poor countries suffer the most. places like bangladesh, where rising sea levels threaten millions. problems across the planet are going to get worse. africa will see more droughts, sparking wars for food and water. causing poverty and diseases. europe could see killer heatwaves and flooding. warmer weather affecting livestock and fish. crops and wheat are strained. united states - we see also snow in the west. it's feared in the west and south. the north will likelyto see floods. >> one bright spot. the government seems to be taking global warming seriously. there is time to adapt and slow some of the effects of pollution. >> thank you to jonathan betz.

friday nights 5.1 magnitude earthquake in southern california took much by surprise sh - almost everyone. a prototype model gave pasadena scientists a few seconds warning. when it comes to quakes every second counts. >> here in california, one of the most seismically active part of the statement, there's a difference between forecasting an earthquake or preticketing it problem predicting it ahead of time. the 1979 earth quake was a 6.9, devastating san francisco. fire raged out of control and the marina had to be rebuilt. it caused more than 60 deaths, more than 3700 injuries, and $6 billion in property damage

making it one of the most expensive. while we think we are acquainted with the damage an earthquake can do, we have barely began to study them. >> we have been watching quakes for 50 years. to think that in the last 50 years of recording we captured the important parts, probably not. there's a lot of surprises go out there for us. >> science can't currently forecast when an earthquake will begin. in japan, which was 10 times the earthquake, seismologists will ping your phone. caltech established a similar system for research purposes in california. >> the simulation of caltech's system shows an earthquake beginning at the san andreas fault five miles down the crust,

slowly moving up the fault towards los angeles. the red is the heavy yes shaking, this eventually will be a 7.2 quake. as the p waves hit los angeles, that's when the resist departments get their warning, a minute and a half before the bad stuff starts. >> what is the use of a 1-minute warning. >> with a couple of seconds, there's a lot you can do. the departmentist can take the drill out of your mouth or the scientist the knife out of your chest. there's a lot of the automatic things in manufacturing. >> why worry about something so rare. >> consider how bad earthquakes can be. thomas heaton point to 1811 and 1812, when five earthquakes at 7 or higher shook california and southern missouri. >> there was little damn.

if you took them and moved to the united states today, basically people will have a different opinion about earth quaucks. >> it's not a question about whether we can predict earthquakes, it's whether we pay for the ability. a system in california could cost $16 million and more to implement, not including codes that we'd have to put into place. >> an apocalyptic earthquake may not strike the united states in our lifetime, but it will happen, and the question is whether we are prepared even by a few seconds, to help. >> here they have passed a bill to look at at possibility of putting a system into effect. they put no money behind that. contrast that with japan. it's a start lipping difference. as a researcher pointed out. in the united states, few

lawmakers experienced an arth quake. in -- earthquake, in tokyo they have felt what it's like. >> in a few minutes counting down to the midnight deadline for health care coverage. many americans have coverage, but millions can't afford it. how they struggle to get the health care they need. i'll talk to tom dashel about the health care safety. that and more in our social report:

>> heath insurance for millions, many that did not have coverage before. after years of debate... >> is this a joke. >> dire predictions. >> your plan can no longer be offered. >> technical troubles. >> the roll out was bad. >> and public doubt. >> it's not afford racial.

>> the deadline to role in affordable care act, what some say is working and others not. and the law in our special report, "obamacare, what now." >> welcome back. i'm john seigenthaler, and we interim what the affordable care act means. midnight is the deadline for americans to sign up for health care or face penalty. we begin with that update from patty culhane. >>. this is the date of health insurance on the last official day to sign up or pay a fine. the problem-plagued website overwhelmed, crashed twice. the administration says it's proof president obama's signature legislation was needed. now the poor will get help to buy insurance, many in the middle class pay more.

10 million have signed up. for the program to be sound, large numbers of young, healthy people need to sign up. that's the sole focus of the administration. getting celebrity endorsements. putting the president an programs watched by the young like this comedy show. >> what is it like to be the last black president. >> seriously. what is it like for this to be the last time you talk to a president? >> the numbers show 33% are the key young demographic. it needs to be closer to 40%. >> given that the democrats are politically vulnerable i suspect what happens is the administration will help out insurers if they end up with fewer long low-cost people. >> it would be damaging to the president and his program. to avoid it the administration has been crafting the event, like this with jill biden, the

vice president's wife. the media was not allowed to talk to anyone preselected or coached. even they did not know what they paid for. > i haven't looked too deep into the coverage. >> i haven't thought about it. i'll look into it and do the maths. >> this is about more than health insurance. it's about maths for the program and people that are part of it. >> it's not clear if the maths adds up. if it does, there's one other important number - 30 million. that is the number of people in america who will not have health insurance if the law is eventually labelled a success. >> for millions of people, buys insurance is out of reach. they don't qualify for medicaid. they are too poor for subsidies. we are joined from washington with that.

>> millions are caught in the coverage gap. it may sound strange, but they do not make enough money to get the help of subsidies, yet they live in states that elected not to expand the medicaid program. they can't get on the medicaid role. what are they left to do. for many they go to places like the arlington free clin ib, because it's their last hope. >> once a month for four months, diane brown came to the free clinic hoping to get care. >> this is it for anyone that can't afford medical insurance. this is the only way. it's the only one here in our area. >> the clinic served 1700 peep, but had to turn away hundreds more. it holds a lottery to pick about 200 patients. >> hopefully today i pray i goat the lottery. >> brown is too young for

medicare and doesn't qualify for medicaid. virginia has the fourth toughest. >> every time i talk about affordable care act, it's 2-300 a month. >> if brown made more money, she'd qualify for more subsidies. the obamacare expanded the program to cover people like her, but the state decided whether or not to grow the program. medicaid wants to expand it but the republicans are fighting it sitting costs the the arlington free clinic is bicier than ever. >> most people have two or three

jobs. >> jody is in charge. administration. waiting to see if he'll be select is this man. >> i'm trying to take care of my health. i'm hopeful. >> some are lucky. >> very excited. you were the last ticket. i finally got in. >> others are not. >> didn't go well, but i'm glad for those that got in. their numbers, so they can be treated. >> diane will be back next month. it's her only option. >> i have my head up, i'm positive, i'm looking forward. i'll keep coming up one day i'll get the number. >> the affordable care act may be here, but hopeful visitors to the clinic are concerned about

nor date, the clinic's next lottery. the federal government offered to cover 100% of the medicaid, then it drops to 90 prz. republican-led states say it's still not enough, and they are exposed to the federal healthcare law. they said, "no", and virginia is a state wrestling with this issue. >> former senate majority leader tom daschle joins us. he's a policy advisor at d l.a. piper. welcome. after these years since the law was passed, where does affordable care act stand now, compared to when the bill was signed? >> well, you start with 315 million people covered with applications that they never had before. you can no longer drop someone because of an annual limit or

life-time limit. women will not be charged more than men. seniors no longer have to worry about the big disparity and drug prices. they commonly call the donor home. there's an array of applications that never existed. in addition to young people, over 3 million young people have been able to do that. that's in addition to the medicaid and the coverage that you have been talking about in your report. >> would you say it works? >> absolutely. >> did it work perfectly well? no, not even close. >> did it work well enough to get us started, to start putting together a paradigm in america - absolutely. >> what happens next? >> really, three things. we have to make sure that all those signed up can get the kind of coverage and service they need, and we want to be sure not to break through the demographic

problems that you described. we want to make sure young people are a part of the process to keep prooem youms as low as possible and third prepare for what comes after this, which is next fall, and a new enrolment. it's in addition to working on new price and delivery systems that were part of the bill as well. >> how bad did it hurt the president when he claimed that americans would be able to keep the health care coverage and plans, and many lost it when the law was passed and went into effect. did that have a big impact on. how people viewed the new law? >> it gave opponents an opening, but when you talk about the numbers, and less than 1% of the people that were promised and couldn't sign up for a new plan, a very, very small number, percentage wise.

ultimately that's been resolved. people have the opportunity to get care and in most cases better care at less costs. >> are you concerned republicans will desmantle the law. >> they have voted 60 times to repeal the law. they will not get it done. by 2016 we'll have over 20 million people in the commangs, and that will be an impossibility within the next couple of years. >> have enough young people signed up to make the changes sustainable. >> we will not know it for a while. at a minimum we have 25% of people in the age category of 18-34. we want it higher, we think it will be higher. we won't have the figures for a couple of weeks. >> one of the initiatives is tellie health, how does that impact. >> telar health provides doctors

and nurses with an opportunity to working with people in their homes and rural and isolated settings, to do what we never dreamed possible a few years ago. another breakthrough in a transformative time in america. >> will it save money? >> it will save money, as much as 50 or 60%, bringing down the cost and improving the quality. >> you also, i believe, proposed a federal reserve like health bored. do you endorse that idea. we have too many silos, inefficiency and unnecessary care. we need to coordinate the marketplace. we have no way to do it today. if a reserve-like system allows us to do that. >> there's a story suggesting that hospitals are going to move in on insurance companies, and might try to eliminate health

insures companies in america and take their place, that health insurance companies should provide health. what do you think of that? >> i think you'll see all the entities and health care evolve into things that they are not today. insurance companies could become hospitals and health deliver companies, health deliver companies could be insurance companies, you'll see an amalgam, evolution and blending of the roles, and that will happen with increasing frequency in the n several years. if you were the secretary of health and human service, how would you handle it? >> i am not going to second gs the secretary. this has been a difficult time. she has to feel good. i don't know what the numbers will be. i think it will surprise a lot of people. >> the system broke down today recollects a reminder of the

difficulty that one website can cause an enormous health care law. >> i used commercial sites that have broken down, it's not uncommon for technological services of any kind. there was an enormous amount of volume, more than we had before. it's held up well, and obviously they got back on their feet quickly. it's an indication that in spite of the volume, they are able to deal with themes that would have been -- numbers that would have been impossible a month ago. >> thank you for coming on the program. >> the goal of the affordable care act is to increase the number of americans with health insurance. the system seems to make an impact. at the end of 2013, 18% of americans were uninsured. it dropped to 15.9%. 6 million americans signed up on the marketplace exchanges. a third of those people had no

insurance whatsoever. the president's heath care law received criticism since its inception from lawmakers to americans without insurance. >> i have to wonder how to pay the bills, how to get medicine. >> for some it's a life saver. >> i don't know if my kids would have a mother. i don't know if my husband would have a wife. >> the personal impact of obamacare in our first-person report tonight.

>> after a bumpy start, the healthcare.gov website is limping towards a deadline, but many exchanges are getting off the grouped. >> when the affordable care act became law, the states had a choice. they could join a federally run exchange or create their own. >> states have had different experiences, 27 states allow the figure to run their health care changes, 16 operate their own.

seven states use a hybrid of the two. operating a marketplace worked out well for some states and been a challenge for others. in california's marketplace more than 1 million are signed up, the highest in the country. new york is second on the list. hundreds of thousands signed up. elsewhere the law has been more headache than blessing. at the bottom of the list, hawaii. because they have an insurance program and allows people with plans to keep them through 2016. it has been called the biggest tech knoll onlyical disaster in auburn. of 50,000 that signed up. most filled out paper applications. some states running their own exchanges are giving consumers time to sign up. a few are abandoning programs and returning to healthcare.gov.

>> some states are calling washington for advice on how to make their exchanges run better. that's despite the troubled roll out of healthcare.gov. >> thank you. >> heated care insurance is comply -- healthcare insurance is difficult to cover. there's statistics, calculations, emotions - frustration and despair. and a woman trying to pay her bills. >> pouring over bills is worrisome. she ascertains $600 a week as a nursing assistant and struggles thou make end meet. >> i think about how i'm going to pay them. how many hours do i need to work. >> diagnosed with endometriosis her treatment is expensive and she does not have health insurance, missing the deadline to get a group policy. >> i need insurance so i can

proceed with having the fibro tumours removed. >> you wept into the marketplace. the best quote she got was 300 a month. >> for a single parent, it's not affordable. anderson earns too much to qualify for a cheaper policy. for others here, new orleans's uninsured poor. the city health department is urging them to sign up. >> we had a citizen tell us that insurance may be low. 25 to $50 per month. for the problems that many experienced trying to get health insurance. some say after years of being denied they can afford it now. >> under the affordable care act. wade got a policy for $100 a month, he called it a saving grace for his daughter.

me being in the job status that i'm in now, i have to have it for her, my daughter. >> everyone who is eligible to take advantage of the opportunity and realise that if you don't, there'll be a period of time that you won't have access. >> after march 31st there won't be access until next fall. >> it makes me wonder because i have to wander how i will pay the bells and get medicine. >> until she find a better ops sholl have to rely on emergency rooms and billed at rates she can't afford. >> steven is the president of 42 holdings, a company specialising in moving and holding and testified on the impact on small businesses like his own. >> while well intentioned it poses a threat to my business's

ability to provide a fun, enthusiastic work atmosphere and quality jobs for people who want and deserve them. >> he joins us live from new york. welcome. >> thank you for having me. >> what impact did this have on your business. >> the biggest point of the affordable care act, is not so much the act, but what it's been doing to small businesses, and the change from a 40 hours work week to a 30 hour, and that's been dert in theal to small beside owners. >> explain, when you take 40 hours, i had the majority, between 32 and 40. when you force a mandate on someone like myself with over 50 employees and on a ramp up phase, we are stuck with over

10% of excess fees. >> what were you forced to choose between? did you cut back on part-time employees. >> that's what i did. i added more work to my full-time employees, and taking away a good portion and not even hiring the part-time employees, putting in a solid 37 in fear of what may happen in a year or two. we must plan ahead. >> we were concerned about hiring full-time people. you want to continue with the part-time folks, because you don't know what will happen in the future? >> it's the opposite. i'm looking toward more full-time, but less. here i am. part of the job creators network. the founder of home deepo, and reducing the amount of jobs, and all i want to be is a job

creator. things about the act - is there things about the act that you like? >> it's obvious your national health care system is broke. there's a lot of great things, there are people in great need of well-to-do heath care coverage. the majority of people are employed by small business owners. these type of mandates affect the small business owner providing 72% of the jobs out there. when you have a report coming out from the international franchise association and the u.s. chamber of commerce saying 64% of fran size openers and 57% of non-franchise owning businesses say that they are - feel uncomfortable and feel their business will be hurt by the affordable care act. >> was your business hurt, did you lose money.

you loss money. we must k make a profit. when we lose the profit, it hurts. i'm not a large corporation. and when you place someone like myself and our company into the realm of a large business, that can't be done. >> how much did you lose? >> 32%. >> you lost 32% of your profit as a direct result of the affordable care act. >> going forward, our prediction that we lose 32% if we are pleased within the mandate of 50 employees, and forced to have all the employees covered under the - under a health care policy. >> interesting conversation. great to have you on the program. thank you for sharing your story. >> thank you, i appreciate it. >> erin was diagnosed with looupize in 2010, an autoimmune disease where the body's immune system attacks healthy tissues.

she suffered a stroke. medical bills were stacking up. she said obamacare saved her and her family. >> the affordable care act for my family has been - it's hard to put into words because it's been a life saver. when i became ill the bills started coming in, and they didn't stop. they kept coming, even with good insurance, they kept coming. it took away - it was so frightening. it takes away the peace of mind. you think you have insurance and you'll be covered. as it turned out you are paying a tremendous amount of money pocket. peace of mind is with the affordable care act, it changed everything. it was such better coverage,

that it took us from having to pay about $20,000 pocket to saving $20,000. >> we did everything an american family is supposed to do. we had savings put away, we had family and support to help us we had good insurance, my husband and i worked full-time doing what you are supposed to do. with all of that, we were - it was bys and medical debt to the point we were doing to lose our home. we had no idea how we were going to live. there was a point where some medications were cost prohibitive. the doctor was recommending other medications as substitutes, you know, so i could afford it. my body needed the big guns, the

really good medication. and without it i don't know if my kids would have a mother. i don't know if my husband would have a wife. >> some of the health care stories we heard today. on the time day, our picture of the day is from los angeles. a woman and her 3-year-old daughter at an enrol. event held across the country. they were signing up for health insurance under the affordable care act. richelle carey will have the headlines coming up in a moment.

>> welcome to al jazeera america, i'm richelle carey. here are the top sories, we are a minute away from the deadline to enrol in affordable care act.

anyone that has begun the process will be covered. >> there were riots from protesters in albuquerque. they are demanding an independent investigation. it was the 24th fatal shooting. 24 people have been confirmed dead in washington. the total at 24, with 22 still missing. authorities looking into whether illegal logging may have erased the risk of mudslide in the area. >> the c.e.o. of gm, mary barra, faces a congressional hearing a day after a recall of more than a million vehicles. she'll be grilled about a faulty ignition switch.

gm called back another 1.5 million vehicles because of a power steering problem. >> they are the headlines. "america tonight" with adam may is next. you can get the latest news online at aljazeera.com. >> on "america tonight", a major develop in the search for ralisha. investigators believe the man accused of kidnapping the 8-year-old is dead. where is she? >> in the thick of it - the strength of neighbours - hurting but hunting for the missions. >> you are mindful of how logs are stacked. someone could be underneath it, it's intense. >> and also a "america tonight" special series "your secret is