For two straight days, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) has pushed the narrative that as long as he’s governor, “people with pre-existing conditions will always be covered.”

Covering pre-existing conditions is personal to me. Plus, it’s the right thing to do: pic.twitter.com/WmbnFNoX2Z — Scott Walker (@ScottWalker) October 15, 2018

I will always cover pre-existing conditions, period. My wife is Type 1 diabetic. My mother is a cancer survivor. My brother has a heart condition. Covering pre-existing conditions is personal to me. And it’s the right thing to do. pic.twitter.com/gvf77PULwL — Scott Walker (@ScottWalker) October 15, 2018

My wife is Type 1 diabetic. My mother is a cancer survivor. My brother has a heart condition. Covering pre-existing conditions is personal to me. And it’s the right thing to do. As long as I’m governor, people with pre-existing conditions will always be covered. — Scott Walker (@ScottWalker) October 15, 2018

There’s just one problem — Wisconsin is actually one of 20 states that sued the federal government earlier this year to immediately overturn the Affordable Care Act, which makes it illegal for insurance companies to discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions.


The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Walker directly authorized state Attorney General Brad Schimel to join the lawsuit.

“At a minimum, the states asked [federal] Judge Reed O’Connor to strike down in their states the parts of the law that prohibit health insurance companies from refusing to cover people with pre-existing health conditions or charging them higher rates,” the Sentinel reported last month. “A preliminary injunction or final ruling declaring the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional would affect more than the roughly 17 million people who have gained health insurance through the law and the people with health conditions.”

In September, Tony Evers, the Democrat who is running against Walker in this year’s election, released a video challenging Walker to back up his empty words with action by withdrawing Wisconsin from the lawsuit.

“Scott Walker, if you’re watching, I have a challenge for you,” Evers says in the video. “If you want to protect the millions of Wisconsinites with a pre-existing condition, drop Wisconsin from this lawsuit today. Because actions speak louder than empty political promises.”


Walker’s doublespeak may be a product of desperate times calling for desperate measures. According to RealClearPolitics, Evers currently leads Walker by more than 3 points, and the ACA’s protections for pre-existing conditions are the most popular part of Obamacare.