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In an unusually impassioned speech, Gov. Jerry Brown vowed Tuesday to protect California鈥檚 health care gains under Obamacare against Republican attempts in Washington, D.C., to roll them back.

鈥淢ore than any other state, California has embraced the Affordable Care Act,鈥� Brown told state legislators and appointees in his annual State of the State address at California鈥檚 Capitol. 鈥淚 intend to join with other Governors and Senators, and with you, to do everything we can to protect the health care of our people.鈥�

Brown said California would not 鈥渢urn back鈥� on advances it鈥檚 made in health coverage under pressure from the new Republican administration in Washington. Under the new federal leadership, he said, the 鈥渇uture is uncertain and dangers abound.鈥�

Health coverage for Californians under the Affordable Care Act 鈥渉as come with tens of billions of dollars from the federal government,鈥� said Brown. 鈥淲ere any of that were to be taken away, our state budget would be directly affected, possibly even devastated.鈥�

Leveraging an estimated federal money, health coverage has been extended to five million Californians under Obamacare, which includes federally subsidized private health plans and an expansion of eligibility for Medicaid, the program for low-income people 鈥� known in this state as Medi-Cal.

Brown received cheers and several standing ovations from legislators during his speech, an address intended to set the state鈥檚 policy-making tone for the year. The 78-year old governor was visibly energized during his 16-minute speech, often speaking in an emphatic, defiant tone. While also emphasizing renewable energy initiatives and an inclusive immigration policy, Brown veered off script to voice support for women鈥檚 reproductive health care.

鈥淲e鈥檙e going to fight for Planned Parenthood, which has been unfairly attacked in too many places in this country,鈥� he said.

Health care advocates quickly piped up on Twitter and in press releases to support the governor, saying he is rightly alarmed at the threat of losing billions of federal dollars not just from the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, but also under Congressional proposals to change Medicaid into a state block grant program.

鈥淲e look forward to working with [Governor Brown] to fight for our health in Congress,鈥� Anthony Wright, executive director of Health Access, said in a statement.

Kieryn Darkwater, a young transgender person of color, praised the speech on Twitter, saying it provided reassurance that California is a safe place for immigrants and others who are 鈥渕arginalized.鈥�

鈥淚 deeply appreciated that he spent so much time talking about the issues of health care and protections for our communities,鈥� Darkwater, an Oakland-based activist, artist and programmer said via email to California Healthline.

Darkwater is enrolled in Medi-Cal, which covers much-needed mental health medications and gender transition hormone treatments.

鈥淢edi-Cal is currently keeping me both alive and able to stay afloat financially,鈥� Darkwater said.

Assemblymember Rob Bonta, D-Oakland, the former chairman of the Assembly Health Committee, that he was proud Brown 鈥渃ame out swinging in strong defense of health, immigrants, [and]聽science.鈥�

Even some state Republicans responded favorably to Brown鈥檚 call for bipartisanship.

Senate Republican Leader Jean Fuller, R-Bakersfield, said reaching across party lines is especially important to build bridges with national policymakers.

鈥淲orking with Washington should emulate the bipartisan successes we have had in our state,鈥� Fuller wrote in a statement.

Covered California, the state鈥檚 Obamacare insurance exchange, reported strong enrollment numbers today despite uncertainty surrounding a possible repeal of the health reform law. Officials in the subsidized marketplace since November, roughly on par with last year鈥檚 enrollment over the same time period.

This story was produced by , which publishes , an editorially independent service of the .