State Treasurer Gives Californians Perfect Holiday Gift: Announces State Moratorium on All Tobacco Investments

    SACRAMENTO, Calif., Dec. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Medical Association applauds
 today's announcement by California State Treasurer Phil Angelides that the
 state will place an immediate moratorium on any state investments in tobacco
 companies. Treasurer Angelides also announced that he has asked the California
 State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) to consider divesting tobacco
 investments from its $100 billion portfolio.
     "While we recognize that the State of California does not currently hold
 any tobacco investments, we hope the Treasurer's announcement sets a precedent
 the state's large retirement systems like Cal STRS will follow," CMA Executive
 Vice President Jack Lewin, MD, said. "The state's moratorium on tobacco
 investments confirms just how much of a social outcast the tobacco industry
 has become. And rightly so. The Treasurer's decision makes good sense both
 medically and socially."
     Dedicated to the health of all Californians, California Medical
 Association ( http://www.cmanet.org ) represents more than 34,000 California
 physicians from all regions, modes of practice and medical specialties.
 
 

SOURCE  California Medical Association