PHOENIX (AP) — A judge has blocked a citizen's initiative that would have banned surprise medical billing and barred insurers from discriminating against people with pre-existing medical conditions from appearing on Arizona's November ballot.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Pamela S. Gates tossed the initiative Friday after determining that more than 150,000 of the voter signatures initiative proponents collected to quality it for the ballot were invalid for various reasons.
She also says a summary voters who signed petitions saw was inaccurate or misleading.
Opponents hailed the ruling, saying the the measure backed by unions would have boosted health care costs. Backers vowed to appeal.
