MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald is walking back comments he made that he wouldn’t rule out accepting federal money to expand Medicaid.
The Republican said on WISN-AM radio Friday that he “went too far” in saying that on Thursday. Fitzgerald told reporters at a news conference Thursday that he didn’t support taking the money. Then he added, “there’s a lot of moving parts but I don’t want to be presumptuous and rule it out.”
Democrats have been advocating for accepting the money for years. The nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau said would provide Medicaid coverage for about 75,000 poor people and save the state about $180 million a year.
Democratic Gov.-elect Tony Evers says he will count on the money in his first budget.
