Michigan's Snyder is latest GOP governor to accept Medicaid expansion under 'ObamaCare'

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder will embrace the Medicaid expansion in President Obama's signature healthcare law — the latest Republican to buck party leaders who have pressed governors hard to resist the expansion.

The Detroit Free Press reported Wednesday that Snyder will back the expansion in the budget he delivers to the state legislature the next day. The expansion will give roughly 470,000 Michigan residents access to Medicaid, the newspaper reported.

Snyder has been under considerable pressure to accept the Medicaid expansion, which is initially free for state governments. And his choice comes amid a small flood of prominent Republican governors signing on to the expansion, including Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer and Ohio's John Kasich.

The Supreme Court's landmark healthcare ruling last year made the Medicaid expansion optional for states, and conservatives have pressed their governors hard to resist the expansion as a way to fight "ObamaCare."

But Republican governors appear to agree with the White House that the expansion is a good deal. The federal government will initially cover 100 percent of the costs, falling to 90 percent in a few years.

The White House has abandoned proposed Medicaid cuts that would have shifted costs to the states, saying it's important to send a message that federal Medicaid funding will be secure and governors should feel confident taking up the expansion.

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