ELLENSBURG - Matt Manweller, Republican candidate for the Washington State Legislature from the 13th District, has announced he will support legislation that opts Washington State out of the Medicaid mandate in ObamaCare.

As part of the decision to uphold the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts held that the federal government cannot force states to join the Medicaid expansion portion of the legislation. In doing so, the Chief Justice moved much of the political debate about the president's signature legislation back to the country's 50 state legislatures.

"The half-trillion dollar Medicaid mandate is nothing more than a new name for a single-payer European-style health care system," Manweller said. "Obama is trying to get socialized medicine in the back door by calling it something else. And he is paying for it by raiding Medicare funds. I will oppose him."

Manweller noted he was "deeply disappointed with the Court's decision and (Chief) Justice John Roberts' novel interpretation of the Constitution that legitimized ObamaCare. That being said, the silver lining was that he also made it very clear that states could not be forced into the plan. Given that choice, I believe Washington State should exercise its constitutional right to opt out of this bureaucratic system that puts government officials in charge of our health care."

Manweller is not the first to suggest states opt out of the Medicaid mandate. Prominent governors such as Wisconsin Scott Walker and Florida Rick Scott have also indicated their states will not implement the Medicaid mandate portion of ObamaCare.