Tobacco.org

• Cigarette discount ban gets 2d look 

Fearful that Massachusetts retailers and smokers would be hurt if a state-imposed prohibition on retail cigarette discounts takes effect next week, the administration of Acting Governor Jane M. Swift yesterday started backing away from the ban.

The surprising reversal came as Philip Morris, the nation's largest cigarette manufacturer, said it was preparing to eliminate its retail price promotions in Massachusetts for at least the next two months, a move that was expected to boost the price of a pack of Marlboros and other brands by 60 cents each.

Kevin Sullivan, Swift's secretary of administration and finance, said he wanted to take a second look at the directive on retail cigarette discounts issued by the Massachusetts Revenue Department. The directive had been in the works for months and was scheduled to take effect Monday.

The fallout from the retail discount ban, coupled with a proposed 75-cents-a-pack increase in the cigarette excise tax passed by the House and Senate, could have made Massachusetts cigarettes the most expensive in the country.

Some retailers, who rely heavily on cigarette sales and the foot traffic they generate, have warned that the rapid runup in prices would spur consumers to buy cigarettes in other states or on the Internet.

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