ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, March 18, 1997 TAG: 9703180034
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: MIAMI
SOURCE: KNIGHT RIDDER/TRIBUNE
The U.S. Supreme Court found no fault with Florida's law permitting the state to seek reimbursement of Medicaid expenses caused by smoking.
Florida's bold lawsuit to force cigarette companies to pay billions of dollars in health-related damages passed a major test Monday as the U.S. Supreme Court refused to block the case.
The court rejected a tobacco industry challenge of a law that makes it easier for Florida to recover taxpayer funds spent on behalf of sick smokers.
The case is set for trial in August. Cigarette manufacturers, also accused of racketeering, could be assessed at least $3 billion in damages if found culpable.
``This gives us the green light,'' said Tim Howard, who is coordinating the state's case. ``It gets us to the trial date. It stops the industry's delaying tactics dead in the water.''
Said Gov. Lawton Chiles, who has set his sights on the tobacco industry: ``Now we can get on to tobacco justice.''
Tobacco companies said the state still faced obstacles.
``It wasn't a ruling on the merits,'' said Stephen Krigbaum, a West Palm Beach lawyer who represents Philip Morris USA, one of 21 companies listed as defendants. ``Our focus now is on attacking the state's theories at the trial court level in pretrial motions.''
But Philip Morris seemed resigned to arguing its case before a jury this summer.
``After we complete the trial in Florida ... we will have a full record with which to go back to the appellate courts, if that becomes necessary,'' said Gregory Little, a company lawyer in New York.
``Even with the state's blatant attempt to stack the deck against anyone it sues under the statute, we do not believe the state can carry its burden of proof.''
In question is a 1994 law that let Florida combine into one suit thousands of Medicaid patients made ill by tobacco, and to use statistics to help recover the costs of treating them since July 1994.
The law, believed to be the only one of its kind, also bars companies from arguing that a Medicaid patient shares the blame for any tobacco-related illness.
The Florida Supreme Court upheld most of the law in June 1996. The U.S. Supreme Court, without comment, refused Monday to hear the appeal - implicitly deciding that it had no merit.
Several attempts to repeal the law have failed.
Two other major anti-tobacco lawsuits are moving toward trial in Florida this year. One class-action suit focuses on the hazards of second-hand smoke, the other claims that the industry intentionally addicted smokers
LENGTH: Medium: 58 linesby CNB