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PHAI to Host International Webinar on the Myth of the Responsible Gambling Model

It’s Not the Dough, it’s the Dopamine: The Dangerous Myth of the Responsible Gambling Model
How the gambling industry misleads regulators and imperils the public’s health. . . and what we can do about it!
An unprecedented Zoom event during Problem Gambling Awareness Month

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PHAI’s Gottlieb Pens Commentary: “How The Opioid Settlement Could Truly Help The Addicted”

On July 9, 2019. the WBUR (Boston NPR affiliate) opinion blog, Cognoscenti, published an opinion piece penned by PHAI’s executive director seeking to leverage any forthcoming settlement of the the more than 2,000 lawsuits pending against opioid pain manufacturers, their distributors, and their retailers to create an independent foundation to help coordinate a national response

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These Youth Will Not be Fuuled: An overview of the 2019 Altria Group Annual shareholders Meeting

By Edward L. Sweda, Jr., PHAI Senior Attorney Five months before Howard A. Willard III presided for the first time over the Altria Group annual shareholders meeting in Richmond, Virginia, the company carried out a business plan that dominated the discussion at the meeting. On December 20, 2018, Altria Group announced it had spent $12.8

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Lawsuit Demands Juul Fund Treatment for the MA Adolescents it Addicted

Today, the Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) took the first step in launching a public health class action lawsuit in Massachusetts against Juul Labs, the makers of the most popular e-cigarette in the United States, for designing and marketing its product to appeal to and addict adolescents. This is the first such case brought against

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2018 Altria Group Annual Shareholders Meeting – A Time of Transitions

By Edward L. Sweda, Jr., Senior Attorney It became clear in the months leading up to the May 17th Annual Shareholders Meeting for Altria Group that 2018 would be a time for change for the company.  In January, Chairman, CEO and President Martin Barrington publicly announced his intention to retire due to the approach of

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End of Year Appeal

This year, PHAI continued moving cases against Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds to trial, went to court to tell Coca-Cola and the American Beverage Association to be honest about the link between sugar drink consumption and disease, and have been working on a number of other potential lawsuits with a public health impact. We provided

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Developing State Policy Recommendations for Safe Drinking Water Procurement in Child Care Centers and Schools

Access to safe and appealing drinking water in child care centers and schools is a key strategy to build healthy habits that children will use for life to maintain a healthy body weight and to support overall health. This study sought to identify and summarize state-level policies in twenty states for drinking water quality and

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Support PHAI’s Violence Transformed Program

In 2015, a remarkable program moved to PHAI. Violence Transformed is an annual series of visual and performing arts events that celebrate the power of art, artists and art-making to confront, challenge and mediate violence.  Violence Transformed furthers our public health goal of reducing preventable injury. Project Director, Mary Harvey, recently sent out this request for support:

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No More Heart Health Valentines from Coke

By Cara Wilking, JD, Consulting Attorney, Public Health Advocacy Institute [PLEASE NOTE: This blog post was prepared prior to unexplained changes to Coca-Cola’s database of its funding of  organizations in the United States. The information reflects the dollar amounts initially reported by Coca-Cola in the Fall of 2015.] For years, the month of February has

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PHAI Submits Comments on Proposed Fantasy Sports Regulations in MA

Massachusetts attorney general, Maura Healey, has proposed regulations to protect consumers from deceptive practices of daily fantasy sports operators in Massachusetts.  These include provisions to prevent youth access, limit monthly betting, and prevent professional players from using special tools to dramatically improve their chances of winning. The Public Health Advocacy Institute previously argued to Ms.

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