Judge Issues Order for Major Tobacco Companies

Tobacco Companies Must Now Display Signs With Health Risks

(USNewsBreak.com) – For decades, tobacco companies promoted smoking as the cool thing to do. Commercials from decades ago show everyone enjoying cigarettes at home, at work, and even while out delighting in recreational activities. However, in 1999, the Department of Justice (DOJ) sued several large tobacco companies for purposely misleading the public on smoking risks and violating the 1970 Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Seven years later, in 2006, a federal judge ruled in the DOJ’s favor — but it took many more years for the most recent action to take effect.

On Wednesday, December 7, the DOJ announced that a federal judge finally “issued an order imposing the last of several corrective remedies” relating to the litigation. Several big tobacco companies — Philip Morris USA Inc., Altria, R.J. Reynolds, and four ITG-owned brands — will now have to display the corrective statements in retailers across the country. Companies must produce signs with “eye-catching” designs and display warnings in English and Spanish. They will need to notify the general public of the health risks of smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke, the addictive nature of cigarettes, misconceptions regarding low-tar products, and the manipulation of products’ designs for “optimum nicotine delivery.”

This order goes into effect as of July 1, 2023, and will affect approximately 200,000 retail locations.

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