Critic of Obamacare now extols a key plank of plan

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker wants to bar insurers from denying coverage due to a pre-existing illness. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker wants to bar insurers from denying coverage due to a pre-existing illness. Photo: Scott Bauer, Associated Press Photo: Scott Bauer, Associated Press Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Critic of Obamacare now extols a key plank of plan 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

MADISON, Wis. — In a tack to the left in an election year, Republican Gov. Scott Walker announced Sunday that he wants a state law that would bar insurers from denying a person health coverage because of a pre-existing condition.

He also wants Wisconsin to join Minnesota, Oregon, Hawaii and Alaska in obtaining a federal waiver to offer reinsurance, a move designed to lower premiums for people in the private insurance marketplace.

Walker said the steps are necessary because “Washington failed to act” on passing a replacement for the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare — in effect criticizing fellow Republicans who control Congress and the White House.

Democrats accused Walker of hypocrisy. He has been a consistent and vocal critic of the health care law, refused to participate in the federal marketplace and repeatedly advocated for the law’s repeal and replacement. He also previously suggested he might have Wisconsin opt out of the law’s pre-existing condition rules.

“Give me a break on this pivot,” Democratic Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz said. “The problem we’re trying to fix was self-inflicted by Governor Walker.”

Walker has been embracing ideas originally championed in whole or in part by Democrats as he seeks a third term in November. Earlier this month he called for closing the state’s troubled juvenile prison, which Democrats have pushed for years. And last year, he gave public schools essentially the level of funding requested by state schools Superintendent Tony Evers, a Democrat running against him for governor.

Walker told reporters he’s simply “listening to people across the state. It doesn’t matter if they’re Democrat or Republican. I don’t think those are Democrat issues, those are Wisconsin issues. People care about them.”

He said his latest health plan addresses the concerns of people who buy insurance through their employers by guaranteeing that pre-existing conditions will be covered. Even though that’s currently federal law, Walker said it is important that the state guarantee it and provide peace of mind.

Scott Bauer is an Associated Press writer.