Gov. Rick Scott has announced that he will expand Medicaid to an estimated 900,000 additional Florida residents under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.

The decision is a surprise since Scott has been a vocal critic of the Affordable Care Act.

The Republican governor said Wednesday that he will support a bill that would expire in three years. Scott entered politics in 2009 running national cable TV commercials criticizing the president's plan.

The federal government will pay for the Medicaid expansion for the first three years and pay 90 percent after that.

Scott joins six other Republican governors who are also expanding Medicaid.

The decision came hours after federal officials announced they will approve Florida's request to privatize its existing Medicaid program if the state agrees to measure the quality of patient care.

In a statement, Scott said “While the federal government is committed to paying 100 percent of the cost of new people in Medicaid, I cannot, in good conscience, deny the uninsured access to care. We will support a three-year expansion of our Medicaid program under the new healthcare law, as long as the federal government meets their commitment to pay 100 percent of the cost during this time. This legislation would sunset after three years and need to be reauthorized.

“There are no perfect options. Our options are either having Floridians pay to fund this program in other states while denying healthcare to our citizens or using federal funding to help some of the poorest in our state with the Medicaid program as we explore other healthcare reforms.

“Expanding access to Medicaid services for three years is a compassionate, common sense step forward. It is not the end of our work to improve healthcare.  And, it is not a white flag of surrender to government-run healthcare. I am committed to working every day to improve access to affordable, high-quality healthcare in Florida, while also protecting taxpayers and keeping our economy growing to create more jobs – which ultimately fuels the dreams of every Florida family.”