In reversal, Florida to expand Medicaid under healthcare overhaul TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Florida Gov. Rick Scott announced Wednesday that he intended to expand Medicaid coverage to about 900,000 more people in his state under the federal healthcare overhaul, a surprise decision from a vocal critic of President Obama's plan. Scott is the seventh Republican governor to propose expanding the taxpayer-funded health insurance program. The governor said he gained new perspective after his mother's death last year, calling his decision to support a key provision of the Affordable Care Act a "compassionate, common-sense step forward," and not a "white flag of surrender to government-run healthcare." Before I ever dreamed of standing here today as governor of this great state, I was a strong advocate for better ways to improve healthcare than the government-run approach taken in the president's healthcare law. I believe in a different approach. But regardless of what I - or anyone else - believes, a Supreme Court decision and a presidential election made the president's healthcare mandates the law of the land," Scott said at a news conference. The governor said he could not "in good conscience deny the uninsured access to care." Scott, a former chief executive of the HCA hospital chain, entered politics in 2009 running national cable TV commercials that criticized the president's plan. Florida led the way in challenging the law with a lawsuit that went all the way to the Supreme Court. State lawmakers must sign off on Scott's decision, and the Legislature doesn't meet until next month. "I am personally skeptical that this inflexible law will improve the quality of healthcare in our state and ensure our long-term financial stability," Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford said. Angry conservatives said Scott owed them an explanation. "I am flabbergasted," said Slade O'Brien, Florida director of the conservative group Americans for Prosperity. This is a guy who, before he was a candidate for governor, started an organization to fight 'Obamacare' in the expansion of medical entitlements. This is a guy who said it will never happen on his watch. Well, here it is. The six other GOP governors who plan to expand the program are from Michigan, Ohio, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and North Dakota. Twenty-one states plus Washington, D.C., plan to expand their Medicaid programs under the healthcare law. Fourteen states have said they'll turn it down, although the debate is continuing in several of them. An additional 15 are weighing options.