Byline: Susan Abram Staff Writer
HEALTH: AIDS/HIV foundation says laws need to be enforced.
Advocates for those with AIDS and HIV called on the Los Angeles County Health Department on Thursday to force condom use on production sets in the adult entertainment industry.
'We're calling on the county to shut down porn sets that do not use condoms,' said Michael Weinstein, president of AIDS Healthcare Foundation.
Weinstein said, under California Health & Safety Code, health officials have a right to regulate film sets if they believe an infectious or communicable disease is present.
'It's not an issue of right,' Weinstein said. 'What takes place in a private setting is different than in a commercial setting.'
County officials said they had no comment Thursday.
Weinstein's call for action was in response to last week's news that a woman who works in the adult entertainment industry tested positive for HIV. Health workers at the Sherman Oaks-based Adult Industry Medical Healthcare Foundation, where she is a client, said the case was an isolated one and is significantly different from the HIV scare that jolted the industry five years ago.
Those who work and support the industry say self-regulation, such as the 30-day testing for HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, works better than government regulation, which could force production to move to other states.
'It's been five years since there was a positive (test result) in our industry. It was caught immediately, showing it does work,' said Diane Duke, executive director for the Canoga Park-based Free Speech Coalition. She said condom use on sets should remain optional.
The AIDS Healthcare Foundation and the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV both want legislation that would require condom use on production sets.
Officials with the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health said employers are required to establish an effective control plan to limit exposure to bloodborne pathogens including semen and other fluids. The code does not require condom use.
Six code citations have been issued against adult film production companies in the Valley since 2004, said Erika Monterroza, spokeswoman for the Department of Industrial Relations, which oversees Cal-OSHA.
susan.abram@dailynews.com
818-713-3664
