Mayo Clinic criticizes Pawlenty's fed health care denial

The Mayo Clinic has joined the state's Chamber of Commerce and DFL lawmakers in denouncing Governor Tim Pawlenty's plan to keep federal health care money out of the state.

In a statement released Thursday, the Rochester-based provider said Pawlenty's rejection of early enrollment in Medicaid and his opposition to preserving the original General Assistance Medical Care program have cost the Mayo Clinic and the Mayo Health System about $25 million.

"As the state's largest private employer, Mayo attracts patients from around the nation, and actions by the Governor that jeopardize Mayo's ability to continue to attract these patients and their families to Minnesota for health care, jeopardizes a vital economic engine for our state," the statement said.

Earlier this week, Pawlenty issued an executive order to stop all state agencies from seeking grants and other funds available through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. In the order, he said the federal law "includes unprecedented intrusions into individual liberty."

(MPR reporter Tim Pugmire contributed to this report)