Photos by Associated Press

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (from left), Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman and Delaware Gov. Jack Markell attended the National Governors Association meeting on Friday in Williamsburg. The governors will meet through Sunday.

A re-enactor dressed as Patrick Henry addresses the meeting as Gov. Dave Heineman watches. The governors discussed the challenges of implementing the health care law.

WILLIAMSBURG The nation’s governors flocked to the Colonial icon on Friday and brought with them clashing views on how to implement provisions of the controversial federal health care overhaul.

The annual meeting of the National Governors Association convened just two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a key provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, but effectively gave states flexibility to decide whether to expand the Medicaid program that serves the poor. And the session kicked off on the same day that President Barack Obama began a two-day campaign swing through the state.

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, a Republican, is taking a wait-and-see approach to the issue, seeking more information from the federal government while also hoping that Congress will repeal the law after the upcoming election. In a news conference at the historic old Capitol on Friday, McDonnell said it “doesn’t make sense” to expand the program if its costs can’t be contained.

“Medicaid expansion without reform is irresponsible,” McDonnell said.

McDonnell also revealed during the news conference that Virginia finished the recent fiscal year with a budget surplus for the third consecutive year. A McDonnell aide said after the news conference that the amount of the surplus won’t be known until all of the revenue numbers are compiled. McDonnell will brief legislative budget-writers next month.

Delaware Gov. Jack Markell, a Democrat and NGA vice chairman, said Medicaid expansion “could absolutely be a good deal for Delaware taxpayers” because it would extend coverage to a population that otherwise seeks medical care in hospital emergency rooms.

McDonnell, Markell, and Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman, a Republican and the NGA chairman, spent much of the opening news conference discussing the challenges states confront in implementing provisions of the health care law.

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