Post by Michele on Oct 14, 2009 19:40:39 GMT -5
Lawsuit alleges cigarette companies knew products were hazardous since 1950s
Posted By ANTONELA ARTUSO, SUN MEDIA
Ontario is demanding $50 billion from tobacco companies to pay for the cost of treating their customers, says a government lawsuit launched yesterday.
The claim in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice alleges major tobacco firms conspired to make their products more addictive and to counter public education campaigns about the dangers of smoking.
"The taxpayers of the province of Ontario have paid a lot of money for health care costs directly related to tobacco use over the decades," said Attorney General Chris Bentley. "We believe the taxpayers should be compensated for the costs that they have paid. That's what this lawsuit is about."
An earlier Ontario attempt to sue tobacco firms using the U. S. courts was thrown out in 2000 by a judge who ruled a foreign country should not be able to use the American justice system to recoup alleged losses.
This latest Ontario court action uses legal groundwork already laid by the B. C. government in its attempts to sue tobacco companies.
New Brunswick has also announced plans to sue, and other provinces are contemplating similar court action.
Michael Perley, director of the Ontario Campaign for Action on Tobacco (OCAT), said that this time around, the province stands a much better chance of gaining a court win or settlement.
U. S. officials were able to negotiate an end to Joe the Camel and other tobacco promotion initiatives through a massive settlement deal reached in that country, Perley said.
"This is about way more than money," he said.
Opposition party leaders at Queen's Park spoke in support of the tobacco lawsuit but suggested the Dalton McGuinty government's motives may not be pure.
"The tobacco companies have a lot of explaining and so does Dalton McGuinty," PC Leader Tim Hudak said. "I think McGuinty's anxious to talk about anything besides jobs and the economy."
NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said the government could also be doing more to discourage smoking right now, like moving on an NDP private member's bill to ban individually sold cigarellos, rather than just waiting for a big court pay day down the road.
Bentley said the government has already banned smoking in cars carrying children and brought in a tough anti-smoking bill.
Although tobacco is a legal product, the taxes raised by the government through the sale of cigarettes do not add up to anything near the cost of treating tobacco-related illnesses, Bentley said.
www.theobserver.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=1775376
--------------------------------------------
SO IF THEY WIN WHERE DO YOU THINK THE MONEY WILL GO... WILL IT REALLY GO BACK INTO THE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM??
Posted By ANTONELA ARTUSO, SUN MEDIA
Ontario is demanding $50 billion from tobacco companies to pay for the cost of treating their customers, says a government lawsuit launched yesterday.
The claim in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice alleges major tobacco firms conspired to make their products more addictive and to counter public education campaigns about the dangers of smoking.
"The taxpayers of the province of Ontario have paid a lot of money for health care costs directly related to tobacco use over the decades," said Attorney General Chris Bentley. "We believe the taxpayers should be compensated for the costs that they have paid. That's what this lawsuit is about."
An earlier Ontario attempt to sue tobacco firms using the U. S. courts was thrown out in 2000 by a judge who ruled a foreign country should not be able to use the American justice system to recoup alleged losses.
This latest Ontario court action uses legal groundwork already laid by the B. C. government in its attempts to sue tobacco companies.
New Brunswick has also announced plans to sue, and other provinces are contemplating similar court action.
Michael Perley, director of the Ontario Campaign for Action on Tobacco (OCAT), said that this time around, the province stands a much better chance of gaining a court win or settlement.
U. S. officials were able to negotiate an end to Joe the Camel and other tobacco promotion initiatives through a massive settlement deal reached in that country, Perley said.
"This is about way more than money," he said.
Opposition party leaders at Queen's Park spoke in support of the tobacco lawsuit but suggested the Dalton McGuinty government's motives may not be pure.
"The tobacco companies have a lot of explaining and so does Dalton McGuinty," PC Leader Tim Hudak said. "I think McGuinty's anxious to talk about anything besides jobs and the economy."
NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said the government could also be doing more to discourage smoking right now, like moving on an NDP private member's bill to ban individually sold cigarellos, rather than just waiting for a big court pay day down the road.
Bentley said the government has already banned smoking in cars carrying children and brought in a tough anti-smoking bill.
Although tobacco is a legal product, the taxes raised by the government through the sale of cigarettes do not add up to anything near the cost of treating tobacco-related illnesses, Bentley said.
www.theobserver.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=1775376
--------------------------------------------
SO IF THEY WIN WHERE DO YOU THINK THE MONEY WILL GO... WILL IT REALLY GO BACK INTO THE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM??