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JOHN HAY RACES AHEAD!

Plus: Mango and Mojito newest flavors in Heaven!

Los Angeles, August 23 – Ron Cox drove the John Hay Cigars Pontiac to a ninth-place finish in the Allen Crowe 100 ARCA RE/MAX stock-car series opener in Springfield, Illinois last Sunday.

The John Hay Cigars Pontiac?

That’s right! Since buying the John Hay brand from the Stewart family, Dave and Lauren Patrick have been steadily increasing distribution and was a one-race title sponsor of the ARCA No. 5 Pontiac stock car from Bobby Gerhart Racing which drives on the ARCA circuit. The Allen Crowe 100 was the 16th of 23 races on this year’s circuit

As Gerhart himself was injured in a race at Pocono on August 4, Cox stepped in to race the car around the one-mile oval and earned the No. 5 car its ninth top-ten finish of the season.

The Patricks chose the Springfield race for their sponsorship because of John Hay’s connection to the Illinois capital. Hay was a young lawyer practicing in Springfield before President-Elect Abraham Lincoln chose him to be one of his private secretaries in the White House. Hay not only became a close confidant of Lincoln, but later helped write what is still considered an outstanding biography but later served as Secretary of State to Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt as well as U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain.

Widely known during his lifetime, Hay was asked by W.W. Stewart if he would lend his name to a Pennsylvania-made cigar and Hay agreed. The brand began in 1882 and was enjoyed by Hay and many others before his death in 1905. The cigar brand fell into oblivion until revived by Craig Stewart (W.W.’s grandson) as a machine-made brand during the Cigar Boom in 1997. It’s now offered in both a machine-made edition (made in Pennsylvania) and a handmade version called the Ambassador Series made in the Dominican Republic in three sizes.

Next month, a limited-edition Anniversary Series cigar will be available to mark the 125th anniversary of the John Hay cigar. Only 1,882 will be made to mark the beginning of what has proved to be a remarkably resilient brand.

Heaven gets a little more crowded:
Heather Phillips is nothing if not inventive. Her already-popular Heaven line of handmade, long-filler flavored cigars is available in 12 flavors.

Make that 14 flavors.

Taking advantage of the wide popularity of tropical fruits as well as interest in Cuba, the Heaven line added “Mango-Licious” and “Mojito Madness” to their line-up, adding their flavor list which already includes Heavenly Vanilla, Angel’s Spice (cinnamon), Cupid’s Cherry Cream, Raging Rum, Chocolate Thunder, Strawberry Banana Bliss, Midnight Mocha Creme, Heather’s Honey Nut, Aphrodite’s Amaretto, Orange Dreamsicle, Grape Goddess and Celestial Cognac.

Made by hand in the Dominican Republic, the Mojito-flavored line, which comes in Petite (5 inches by 30 ring) and Corona (5 5/8 inches by 46 ring), is true to its name featuring an infusion of mint, tropical lime and a “kick” of rum. The only thing missing is the sunset and the sea spray from sitting on the Malecon in Havana . . . Blue Cross/Blue Shield come out against SCHIP bill!
Blue Cross and Blue Shield supply health coverage for nearly 100 million Americans, so you’d think they’d be in favor of the re-authorization of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) bill now in front of Congress that will be funded by tobacco taxes. Guess again.

The omnipresent Charles Janigian, head of the California Association of Retail Tobacconists, sent over a startling example of how legislation is made in the form of a letter from the President and Chief Executive of Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Scott Serota to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) concerning the SCHIP Act:

“On behalf of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association – which represents 39 community-based Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans that collectively provide coverage for 98 million Americans – I am writing to urge your opposition to the “Children's Health and Medicare Protection (CHAMP) Act” (H.R. 3162). This bill's massive cuts to the Medicare Advantage program would be devastating to millions of seniors and disabled individuals currently enrolled in the program – most of whom are on fixed incomes and cannot afford to pay more for their healthcare.

“We agree that reauthorization of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) should be a top priority for Congress this year. Blue Plans currently provide services to one-third of individuals enrolled in SCHIP and share Congress' commitment to ensuring the continued success of the program. However, I urge that you oppose the CHAMP Act and ask that it be sent back to committee to craft a reasonable, bipartisan SCHIP reauthorization bill that protects Medicare Advantage coverage.

“Today, Blue Plans provide coverage to 1.3 million Medicare Advantage enrollees and believe it is critical to preserve this popular option that provides comprehensive, coordinated care with lower cost-sharing. Unfortunately, instead of protecting Medicare, the CHAMP Act calls for massive funding cuts to Medicare Advantage and an unprecedented level of government overregulation that will force millions of Medicare beneficiaries to pay more and get less – or lose their coverage altogether.

“I also believe it is very short-sighted that the CHAMP Act compromises the one part of Medicare that can control costs and improve quality over the long-term. The gutting of Medicare Advantage will undermine coordinated care programs that are essential to address the complexities of managing chronic illnesses. Ironically, the bill recognizes those in Medicare should have this option by calling for demonstration programs to develop what Congress is taking away. Please vote against this bill in its current form and join me in urging that it be sent back to committee with a message to protect the nearly 9 million beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage.”

In the end, it’s always about money. But Janigian notes that if enough insurers join with those urging reconsideration of the tobacco tax issues, perhaps the Congress will simply submit a “supplemental authorization” of funds to maintain SCHIP funding for a few months until a better bill – including a change in the proposed cigar tax rates and cap – can be worked out that President Bush will agree to sign.
~ Rich Perelman

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