Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) is taking credit for a $1 billion boost to Wisconsin's Medicaid program—despite voting for the very federal legislation that made the emergency measure necessary.
In recent social media posts, Van Orden repeatedly claims that he was instrumental in helping Wisconsin secure an additional $1 billion annually for BadgerCare, the state's Medicaid program. But the funding was made possible by a scramble among Wisconsin lawmakers and Governor Tony Evers, who rushed to raise the state's provider tax rate — thereby maximizing federal match dollars — before President Donald Trump signed the "Big, Beautiful Bill" mandating nationwide cuts to Medicaid.
The Republican-backed bill, supported by Van Orden, freezes state Medicaid tax rates and is expected to put more than 258,000 Wisconsinites at risk of losing health insurance and several rural hospitals at risk of closing.
Despite voting in favor of the legislation, Van Orden has circulated a letter he sent to Gov. Evers on July 2, urging swift passage of the state budget as proof of his influence in securing the federal funds. But Evers' office flatly rejected that narrative in a statement to HuffPost.
"Congressman Van Orden never personally advocated to the governor or our office for the hospital assessment provision to be included in the state budget until after it was clearly already part of the state budget," said Evers spokesperson Britt Cudaback. "He had nothing to do with the bipartisan negotiations."
"If Congressman Van Orden wanted to take credit for supporting Medicaid and protecting Wisconsinites' access to healthcare, perhaps he shouldn't have voted to gut Medicaid and kick 250,000 Wisconsinites off their healthcare," Cudaback concluded.
Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan also weighed in, mocking Van Orden's last-minute involvement. "You can't create a problem and then claim credit for someone else's help in making it slightly less horrific," Pocan said.
Van Orden maintains that the timing of Evers signing the bill proves he played a key role. "The only reason Tony signed the bill at 1:30 in the morning was to make the deadline I spoke and wrote to him about," he told HuffPost. "Period."
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