A Federal Court has ordered Altria, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco, Lorillard, and Philip Morris USA to publicly tell the truth about their highly addictive product. According to a press release from the American Thoracic Society, “[t]he court-ordered publication of ‘corrective statements’ by major U.S. tobacco companies…should serve as a reminder that tobacco addiction remains a major health problem in the country and that Big Tobacco has a long history of marketing practices aimed at hooking a new generation on a lethal product”.
Some of the “corrective statements” that the tobacco companies must publicly state include:
- More people die every year from smoking than from murder, AIDS, suicide, drugs, car crashes, and alcohol, combined.
- Cigarette companies intentionally designed cigarettes with enough nicotine to create and sustain addiction.
- All cigarettes cause cancer, lung disease, heart attacks, and premature death – lights, low tar, ultra lights, and naturals. There is no safe cigarette.
- Altria, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco, Lorillard, and Philip Morris USA intentionally designed cigarettes to make them more addictive.
See the complete list of “corrective statements” the tobacco companies are required to publish here.