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Tobacco plan smoke clears
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May 1, 1997: 7:20 a.m. ET
Cigarette makers yield on many points in search for blanket immunity
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) -- The offer that the tobacco industry would accept in order to settle litigation against it is beginning to take shape.
As part of a deal, cigarette makers would accept a ban on all cigarette vending machines, halt all outdoor advertising and pay $150 million for anti-smoking campaigns, the Washington Post reported Thursday.
The tobacco industry is in the midst of talks with 24 state attorneys general in order to head off future litigation by people with smoking-related illness claims.
Tobacco companies have been seeking blanket immunity from all future lawsuits, which would require an act of Congress and a lengthy legislative battle.
The attorneys general, however, said they would not offer such unlimited immunity and believe it would be unfair to close off the courts to individuals claiming harm by smoking, the Post said.
As part of a settlement, the industry said it would agree to all measures included in the Food and Drug Administration's plan to reduce underage smoking. That would entail a national smoking age of at least 18 years.
It would require smokers under the age of 27 to show a photo ID to buy tobacco and ban the sales of anything less than a full pack of cigarettes.
It would also abide by the FDA plan, struck down last Friday by a federal judge, restricting advertising on billboards and in magazines and newspapers, as well as on promotional items.
The Post also reported the industry is offering to ban name-brand sponsorship of sporting events, such as NASCAR auto racing.
The talks, which have been going on since early April, are scheduled to continue today, with a core group of negotiators meeting in Washington, D.C.
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