By Mary K. Reinhart | The Arizona Republic
The Goldwater Institute says it will file suit to overturn Arizona’s new law expanding Medicaid eligibility, a day after efforts failed to refer the matter to voters.
The lawsuit against Gov. Jan Brewer and the state’s Medicaid director, to be filed in Maricopa County Superior Court on behalf of lawmakers who voted against expansion, argues that the governor and a bipartisan legislative coalition violated the state Constitution by imposing a tax on hospitals without garnering a two-thirds majority.
It also claims pro-expansion lawmakers ceded their authority to the executive branch, allowing a state agency director to raise taxes on hospitals to help finance Medicaid expansion in violation of the Constitution’s separation of powers.
“This is taxation without representation,” said Christina Sandefur, an attorney with the conservative think tank. “What they’ve basically tried to do is make an end run around one constitutional provision, and, by doing so, we think they’ve violated a second constitutional provision.”
If you’d like to discuss employment or health care law, contact David Weissman, dweissman@roselawgroup.com
