Tobacco.org

Blue Cross and Blue Shield Wins Another Legal Round Against Big Tobacco 

Big tobacco lost an effort to block a suit by Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans for costs due to smoking-related illnesses in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit today. . . The tobacco companies asked the Second Circuit to review a decision by Brooklyn Federal District Court Judge Jack Weinstein, which held that the Blues could pursue their claims against the tobacco companies. The Circuit Court denied their petitions without opinion. The Coalition for Tobacco Responsibility, a group of Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans from around the country, filed three federal lawsuits against tobacco in April 1998 alleging that the industry concealed the addictive nature of smoking, and manipulated nicotine levels to increase the potential for addiction.

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