This is the second time in recent weeks that Gov. Rick Scott has been put in a political corner by his association with President Donald Trump. | AP Photo Scott mum on Trump’s attack on pre-existing condition provision

TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Rick Scott said he supports insurance coverage for pre-existing conditions, but he declined on Monday to criticize the Trump administration’s court effort to gut the provision from Obamacare.

The Trump administration on Thursday sided with conservative states seeking to do away with the Affordable Care Act’s ban on insurers charging people more or denying them coverage based on pre-existing conditions. Though the action to further attack Obamacare in the courts generated significant publicity and could affect as many as seven million Floridians, Scott said he didn’t know enough about it to comment fully.


“I don’t know much about that court case and I heard — somebody just said — that the president tweeted something or did something about that,” Scott said at an event in South Florida on Monday. “We have people that have existing health care issues and we’ve got to create a way that they can continue to get health care.”

The Trump administration’s attempt to do away with pre-existing condition coverage targets one of the most popular provisions in the Affordable Care Act and puts Scott in the awkward position of having to choose between siding with public opinion or criticizing the president — who is a friend of Scott's, and who urged him to run for U.S. Senate.

Scott’s opponent, Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, seized on the issue Monday.

“The Trump administration's latest sabotage of the health care law would take the guarantee of health care coverage away from tens of millions of Americans, including more than seven million Floridians, with preexisting conditions,” Nelson said in a statement Monday. “This is nothing but a heartless, political move that will hurt Florida families. I will continue to fight to protect health care for Floridians, as Trump and his allies, like Rick Scott, keep pushing to dismantle the law that improves access to health care for millions of Floridians."

This is the second time in recent weeks that Scott has been put in a political corner by his association with Trump. After Scott was in Puerto Rico two weeks ago, he was criticized for being unable to say what he would have done differently in response to Hurricane Maria, which devastated the island. Many Puerto Ricans — whose support Scott seeks — fault Trump for not doing enough for the island.

Since announcing his U.S. Senate bid in April, Scott has scarcely mentioned Trump. Democrats are happy to make the connection for him, with the Florida Democratic Party saying he’s often “cozying up to his good friend Donald Trump” at the expense of Floridians.

The governor’s administration has defended Scott against health care criticisms by Nelson, and a super PAC backing Scott’s Senate bid went on offense Monday and launched a $3.5 million broadcast, cable and digital ad buy attacking Nelson’s Medicare record — among other votes he’s taken in Congress.

“Cuts to Medicare providers,” states the ad, featuring Nelson’s aging face through the years, ticking off his policy positions.

Nelson’s team called the charge an outright lie and criticized Scott for failing to expand Medicaid.

Scott’s hesitance in criticizing the president over the Affordable Care Act diverges sharply with his two previous elections. In 2014 and 2010, Scott used it as a campaign weapon with which to bash then-President Obama. Since then, Obamacare has passed Supreme Court muster and become more popular with voters.

After Trump was elected, Scott became a frequent visitor to the White House and the president’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and bragged about having the president’s ear.

So what is Scott saying now to Trump about health care? He wouldn’t specify.

“Since before Trump got elected, I’ve been trying to tell him, I’ve been trying to be active; when they were trying to redo repeal-and-replace Obamacare last year. And so I’m going to keep doing that. And, you know, one thing I learned in fighting for what I believe in in health care is it’s better to be elected because you have a chance to make a decision. I’m going to be active in D.C. to try to make that happen,” Scott said.

While Scott refused to discuss his opinion of the court case against Obamacare’s pre-existing conditions, his campaign said earlier that he still supports covering people with pre-existing conditions.

“The governor’s position on this has not changed,” said Scott campaign spokeswoman Kerri Wyland who then directed POLITICO to an April 2017 op-ed Scott wrote for USA Today and a press release from later that year.

“Protect those with pre-existing conditions,” Scott penned in the op-ed. “Every American, including those with pre-existing conditions, should have the ability to buy any kind of insurance they want,” stated the June 2017 release.

Scott isn’t sure what his health care solution would be for Florida. The state has one of the highest uninsured rates in the country, and it only declined due to Obamacare. Asked Monday what he would do on the issue as a senator to improve health care for Floridians, Scott spoke in generalities.

“I don’t believe in grand bargains because I don’t think they work. What you’ve got to do, is you’ve got to say, ‘What is the problem and let’s see what can we do to try to solve that problem,’ instead of trying to fully change an industry,” Scott said. “I do believe that free markets do work. I do believe that you ought to be able to buy the health care that you want. I do believe that you ought to be able to sell insurance across state lines. And I do believe that you ought to be able to reward people for taking care of themselves. So if you do all those things, I think you can drive down costs of health care for everybody. But, you’ve got to be able to get health insurance.”