Association of Washington Public Hospital Districts v. Philip Morris Inc.

We must decide whether public hospital districts may bring federal and state claims against tobacco firms to recover their unreimbursed costs for treating patients suffering from tobacco-related illnesses.

I

The Association of Washington Public Hospital Districts, along with the Association’s individual member districts (collectively, “Hospital Districts”), appeal from the district court’s dismissal of their federal antitrust, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”), and supplemental state law claims against a number of tobacco companies and tobacco industry organizations (collectively, “Tobacco Firms”). The Hospital Districts are political subdivisions of the State of Washington which are required by state and federal law to provide health care services to the general public regardless of their patients’ ability to pay.

The Hospital Districts allege that the Tobacco Firms have engaged in a half-century conspiracy against the public generally and the health care industry in particular. According to the Hospital Districts, the Tobacco Firms have conspired to misrepresent and to conceal the addictive nature of nicotine and the health risks associated with…