Fourth porn actor allegedly tests HIV-positive amid condom-law fight
The leader of a group that backed a voter-approved mandate to use condoms in filming in Los Angeles County is likening the current industry method of testing performers to “Russian roulette.”
The comments from Michael Weinstein, president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, come after his group announced that a fourth porn actor has come forward as HIV-positive.
“We were approached by a male performer who told us he had tested positive,” Weinstein said, but he would not give any further details.
The Free Speech Coalition, an adult industry trade group, called a filming moratorium Friday — the second in a month — after a performer tested positive for HIV. The group called a weeklong moratorium last month after actress Cameron Bay tested HIV-positive.
A second performer, Rod Daily, who is romantically linked to Bay, came forward on Twitter and told the Los Angeles Daily News that he too had tested positive — but that case was not officially reported to the industry group and did not result in a new moratorium.
Friday’s call to stop shooting came after a third performer tested positive and was reported to the Free Speech Coalition by an industry-affiliated doctor.
Weinstein said he did not know if the newest case had been contracted while filming, but added that he thought “parsing” that question missed the point.
“Whether or not [Bay] was infected on set, she performed with HIV between her tests,” he said. “If you think that Russian roulette is a great way to protect workers, then the present system is perfect.”
The HIV cases have added fuel to a push for a statewide mandate for condom use in adult films. L.A. County voters approved such a mandate last year, which is the subject of an ongoing court battle.
The AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which is pushing for the statewide condom rule, launched a robocall campaign Thursday against Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles), who they allege halted the legislation. Gatto denied that he was holding the bill back.
Joanne Cachapero, a spokeswoman with the Free Speech Coalition, said the group had not received confirmation of the fourth case. The shooting moratorium is ongoing. The trade group said the performer whose positive test prompted the current moratorium had not worked on a film since before the first moratorium was issued Aug. 21.
The industry required performers whose last STD test was prior to Aug. 19 to take a re-test, and said it was considering shortening the frequency of required STD tests for performers from 28 to 14 days, but so far has not announced a decision.
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