OKLAHOMA CITY (Jan. 16, 2023) – The Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) Board of Directors has new leadership for 2023.
Marshall Snipes, appointed to the board by the Attorney General, began a one-year term as chair this month. Susanna Gattoni, appointed by the State Auditor and Inspector, will serve as vice-chair for the year.
Snipes is the CEO of AmeriClaim, a nationwide independent insurance services firm. He is also the managing director of Snipes Management Company, a private equity firm specializing in healthcare and insurance, and a certified public accountant. He has served on the TSET Board of Directors for four years.
“I am honored to serve as chair for the TSET Board of Directors,” said Snipes. “During my time on the board, I have seen firsthand the impact TSET has on the health of Oklahomans. I look forward to continuing to work with TSET to address the major causes of preventable death in our state.”
Snipes brings to the role a wealth of experience in healthcare. He is the former chair of the Board of Integris Health and the author of The Black Jet, a health care public policy newsletter. He has served on numerous boards and commissions of state government including the Oklahoma Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees, the Committee to Privatize the State Insurance Fund, the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, the Working Group to Reform the Workers’ Compensation Law of the State of Oklahoma and the Electronic Data Interchange Commission. Snipes will replace attorney Michelle Stephens as chair.
Gattoni is the deputy counsel for the University of Oklahoma and has served on the TSET board since July 2020. She will replace Bruce Benjamin, retired vice provost and associate dean of Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, as vice-chair.
In 2014, Ms. Gattoni was the recipient of the Courageous Lawyer Award from the Oklahoma Bar Association for pro bono work. She received the Leadership in the Law award from The Journal Record in 2012. She is a former board member for Susan G. Komen Oklahoma and an alumni of Leadership Class 31 for Oklahoma City.
TSET’s mission is to prevent and reduce tobacco use and obesity, the leading risk factors for cancer and cardiovascular disease. More than 57% of preventable deaths in Oklahoma are caused by lung disease, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
The TSET endowment receives a portion of the payments to the State of Oklahoma from Big Tobacco as part of a 1998 Master Settlement Agreement. The earnings from the endowment fund grants and programs aimed at improving the health of Oklahomans.
The TSET Board of Directors, appointed by seven different elected officials and representing each of the state’s five congressional districts, oversees the expenditure of the earnings to fund grants and programs to prevent and reduce tobacco use and obesity.
For more information about TSET, visit www.oklahoma.gov/tset.
###
The Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) serves as a partner and bridge builder for organizations shaping a healthier future for all Oklahomans. TSET provides leadership at the intersections of health by working with local coalitions and initiatives across the state, cultivating innovative and life-changing research and working across public and private sectors to develop, support, implement and evaluate creative strategies to take advantage of emerging opportunities to improve the public’s health. To learn more, visit Oklahoma.gov/TSET.