by Edward L. Sweda, Jr. As soon as Altria Group, Inc. Chairman, CEO and President Martin J. Barrington opened the 2016 Annual Shareholders Meeting, he boasted that 2015 had been “another terrific year.” The “excellent business results” included dividends increasing by 8.7% (to $4.2 billion) and a shareholder return of more than 23%. Marlboro, with […]
Spending 45 Minutes with 80 of My Fellow Altria Shareholders Read More »
On May 23, 2016, the widow and children of baseball great Tony Gwynn filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Altria Group alleging that the manufacturers of Skoal smokeless tobacco’s negligence, fraud, defective design, and failure-to-warn caused the death of the Hall of Famer in 2014. Richard Daynard, PHAI’s president and University Distinguished Professor of Law at Northeastern
PHAI’s Daynard Discusses Tony Gwynn Lawsuit on ESPN and in the New York Times Read More »
By Edward L. Sweda, Jr. When Reynolds American International (RAI) President and CEO Susan M. Cameron told the company’s 2016 annual shareholders meeting that it is “always a pleasure to report good news,” this shareholder was reminded of a similar message: “Alive with Pleasure.” That ubiquitous advertising slogan for Newport cigarettes – which RAI acquired
A Rainy day in Winston-Salem Read More »
In 2015, a remarkable program moved to PHAI. Violence Transformed is an annual series of visual and performing arts events that celebrate the power of art, artists, and art-making to confront, challenge and mediate violence. Violence Transformed furthers our public health goal of reducing preventable injury. Project Director, Mary Harvey, recently sent out this request for support:
Support PHAI’s Violence Transformed Program Read More »
A Florida jury awarded $13 million to the children of a smoker who died from lung disease after smoking for decades. Read the complete story here on Law 360.
R.J. Reynolds Hit With $13M Verdict In Smoker Death Trial Read More »
Read more on this story from the FDA website.
FDA Invites Public Comments on Use of Term “Natural” on Food Labels Read More »
Are individuals responsible for their own health? Or does the health of individuals depend upon the health of their communities? And, can we have healthy communities without restricting individual choice? Conflicts between individual choice and collective action underlie many of the most contested and challenging debates relating to health and health care, from the very
By Cara Wilking, JD, Consulting Attorney, Public Health Advocacy Institute [PLEASE NOTE: This blog post was prepared prior to unexplained changes to Coca-Cola’s database of its funding of organizations in the United States. The information reflects the dollar amounts initially reported by Coca-Cola in the Fall of 2015.] For years, the month of February has been the
No More Heart Health Valentines from Coke Read More »
Massachusetts Attorney General, Maura Healey, has proposed regulations to protect consumers from deceptive practices of daily fantasy sports operators in Massachusetts. These include provisions to prevent youth access, limit monthly betting, and prevent professional players from using special tools to dramatically improve their chances of winning. The Public Health Advocacy Institute previously argued to Ms.
PHAI Submits Comments on Proposed Fantasy Sports Regulations in MA Read More »
The Public Health Advocacy Institute submitted comments to a proposed rule by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) to make its public housing smoke-free. The proposed rule would affect 1.1 million households, but leave 3.4 million other HUD-funded households unprotected. These include the agency’s tenant-based and project-based rental assistance. PHAI argues that