Common Contracts
1 similar Master Settlement Agreement contracts
TOBACCO REGULATION THROUGH LITIGATION: THE MASTER SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT February 15, 2010Master Settlement Agreement • February 16th, 2010
The 1998 Master Settlement Agreement resolved the unprecedented litigation in which the states sought to recoup the cigarette-related Medicaid costs. The litigation was settled through a combination of negotiated regulatory requirements and financial payments of about $250 billion over 25 years. Settlement payments received by the states are strongly related to smoking- related medical costs but also are related to political factors. The payments took the form of an excise tax equivalent. The regulatory restrictions imposed by the agreement also raised antitrust concerns. However, there has been no evident shift in industry concentration. The widely cited increase in cigarette advertising and marketing expenses has largely taken the form of price discounts. The tobacco settlement usurped the normal taxation functions of the legislature and imposed regulatory requirements with no legislative mandate or rulemaking process.
