Democrats will “push Medicaid expansion” in 2018 — and the issue is central to the party’s efforts to take back the Governor’s mansion and legislature.

At the launch of the FDP’s Medicaid Expansion Tour yesterday, Gainesville leaders made clear that Rick Scott’s failure to expand Medicaid for 800,000 had devastated Florida and that reversing Scott’s cruel health care policies will be a rallying cry in 2018. Scott’s failure to expand Medicaid has left hundreds of thousands of Floridians without access to care. Both Adam Putnam and Ron DeSantis have strongly opposed Medicaid expansion — while Democratic gubernatorial candidates back the policy.

The prospect of expanding Medicaid in Florida has already drawn significant attention. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias has called it “one of the most consequential aspects of the 2018 midterms” while The Hill has predicted that “the subject will loom large in governors’ races as well, most notably in Florida.” As Florida Politics’ Drew Wilson reported after yesterday’s event, the tour “signals Florida Democrats’ intent to make health care access the keystone of their efforts to take back the Governor’s Mansion and state Legislature after two decades of Republican rule.”

Gainesville Leaders Launch Statewide Medicaid Expansion Tour

WGFL Gainesville: Gainesville Mayor, Commissioners Say “Electing a Democratic Governor” Will Help Expand Health Care

Democrats say that “electing a Democratic Governor and State Senators will help push the process on everyone getting affordable and accessible health care”

WCJB Gainesville: Florida Democratic Party launches statewide Medicaid expansion tour

“No one should be discriminated against just because they’re sick or have a disability,” Poe said. “We need to elect leaders who will actually fight to expand Medicaid and stand up for all Floridians.”

WUFT [at minute 1:29]: FL Democrats stage a tour in support of Medicaid expansion with a gathering in Gainesville

In Florida, the issue is built into the governors race. [at minute 1:29]

Florida Politics: Florida Democrats launch Medicaid expansion tour

The tour, which will continue Monday in West Palm Beach, signals Florida Democrats’ intent to make health care access the keystone of their efforts to take back the Governor’s Mansion and state Legislature after two decades of Republican rule. As Poe put it: “Medicaid expansion is on the ballot in 2018.”

National Coverage of the Prospect of Medicaid Expansion in FL

Vox: “the prospect of expansion in the state [Florida] is one of the most consequential aspects of the 2018 midterms.”

Roll Call: “The midterm elections are poised to play a pivotal role in whether more states expand Medicaid eligibility, as the number of red-state holdouts dwindles. Governors’ races in states such as Florida and Kansas, along with ballot initiatives in Idaho, Nebraska and Utah, are being watched closely by Medicaid experts this year.”

The Hill: Medicaid expansion “The subject will loom large in governors’ races as well, most notably in Florida, one of the largest states that has not expanded the program giving health insurance to the poor.