Florida Gov. Rick Scott announced he was kicking off a lawsuit against the Obama administration because, he said, the feds were wrongfully tying funding to the state's decision on Medicaid expansion, a key facet of Obamacare.
"It is appalling that President Obama would cut off federal healthcare dollars to Florida in an effort to force our state further into Obamacare," Scott said, while announcing the lawsuit.
Scott objects to the federal linking of funding for certain hospitals – those that participate in the Low Income Pool program for the uninsured – to the state's decision on Medicaid expansion. He said tying LIP funding to Medicaid expansion decisions is a violation of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in 2012 on Obamacare, NFIB v. Sebelius, that gave states the right to choose on this program.
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"The court ruled that the president could not use 'gun to the head' approaches in pushing for Medicaid expansion," Scott said, the Hill reported.
The Obama administration linked the two directly.
A letter from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to Florida read, in part: "Medicaid expansion would reduce uncompensated care in the state and therefore have an impact on the LIP, which is why the state's expansion status is an important consideration in our approach regarding extending LIP beyond June."
CMS responded to the lawsuit announcement by saying "Florida, like all states, is free to implement Medicaid expansion or not," spokesman Aaron Albright said, the Hill reported.