More Celebrities Stage Star-Studded Effort to Sell Obamacare

Oct. 8, 2013— -- Sporting a white trench coat, Jennifer Hudson struts down a Washington street as an ominous voice says, "In the cutthroat world of D.C., Lydia Cole cuts through the B.S."

She sits in the office of a fictional senator listening to him admit he has a pregnant mistress.

"Finally, an actual scandal," Hudson's character says.

After all, "Lydia Cole" patterned after hit television show "Scandal" character Olivia Pope, a sharp-tongued D.C. fixer played by Kerry Washington, has recently been busy with less outrageous matters.

Like dealing with a 20-something worried about a pre-existing asthma condition and a woman concerned because her company's health insurance might not cover mammograms.

In a video produced by humor website Funny or Die, these "scandals" are easily solved by Hudson, who offers her clients advice such as, "The ACA [Affordable Care Act] takes about 15 minutes to sign up for; I need you to go to healthcare.gov."

The clip is just one example of the star-studded White House effort to deploy artists, actors and content creators to help sell the president's signature health care overhaul, the Affordable Care Act, especially to younger Americans.

"Can you please find me a real scandal?" Hudson asks at the end of the Funny or Die video. "All of these people's issues can easily be fixed by the ACA."

Basic Insurance Explained Just in Time for Obamacare

In the week since the launch of the law's state health insurance exchanges, a steady stream of celebrity advocates (think Lady Gaga, Connie Britton, Olivia Wilde, Taye Diggs, Kate Bosworth, Sarah Silverman and Justin Long) have taken to social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram to encourage Americans to #GetCovered (to use their preferred hashtag).

It's all part of an orchestrated public awareness campaign that the White House has been preparing since early summer.

The effort included a widely publicized July 22 meeting hosted by Obama senior adviser Valerie Jarrett that included various celebrities like Hudson, Amy Poehler and Michael Cera, as well as entertainment representatives.

Also in attendance were White House Entertainment Advisory Council co-chairs Eric Ortner, actor Kal Penn and Warner Music Group's Bruce Roberts. In an interview with ABC News, Ortner was quick to point out that the purpose of the meeting was to give the stars facts about the law, also called Obamacare, and let them pass information to their fans.

"What we do is just get people together, build a network based on true facts and real stories, and ask them to expose them without the veil of partisan politics to their audience," Ortner said. "These are just people that want to tell the truth to their networks."

Obamacare Sites Still Swamped but Wait Times Cut

The White House says the youth network is vital to the law's success. Out of the 7 million people the Congressional Budget Office estimates will sign up for the new health care exchanges in 2014, the Obama administration is hoping 40 percent -- or 2.7 million -- of those enrollees will be young, uninsured Americans, ages 18 to 35.

But the White House has some competition from conservatives.

The connection to fans is what Farah said will inspire young Americans to listen when artists and content creators advocate for Obamacare.

"I just think that the way talent is, the way they communicate with fans and how transparent it is, and the direct connection they have with people, they're just that more visible and exposed," Farah said.

"And that allows an environment where you can trust people in a sense. It's kind of this generation's protest song."