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Speaker Does About-Face on Medicaid Help

Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

House Speaker Will Weatherford, who opposes expansion of Medicaid, issued a clarification on Wednesday about the "safety net" program that helped his family pay staggering medical bills for his little brother, who died as a toddler.

It turns out that the help came from the state's "Medically Needy" program, an optional add-on that extends  Medicaid to those who would normally not qualify but who have such high medical bills that they are thrust into poverty.

Weatherford's statement draws a distinction between the Medicaid and Medically Needy programs, but they are both paid for by taxpayers and administered by the same government agency.

For more details, see this article from the Tampa Bay Times.

Originally founded in December 2006 as an independent grassroots publication dedicated to coverage of health issues in Florida, Health News Florida was acquired by WUSF Public Media in September 2012.