Fourth HIV Positive Porn Star Report Denied By Adult Film Trade Group
A possible outbreak in which four porn stars may have tested positive for the deadly HIV virus, which can lead to AIDS, has ground the adult film industry to a standstill — but the update reported yesterday regarding a possible fourth infected porn star is being refuted by a major industry group.
Whether a fourth porn star tested HIV positive remains in dispute, as a larger war over porn regulation is waged. At least two performers in the adult film industry have confirmed they are HIV positive, and a moratorium on porn is in effect as the porn trade battens down the hatches.
Star Cameron Bay was swept up in the porn HIV outbreak, briefly implicating Anthony Weiner scandal starter Sydney Leathers by proxy — the two had worked together on the porn flick Weiner And Me. Leathers denied HIV exposure, but Bay confirmed she tested positive for the virus.
Fellow porn star Rod Daily, who has been linked romantically with Bay, admitted on Twitter Wednesday that he’d tested positive for the virus as well, ratcheting up the porn panic as the count of HIV positive performers rose.
Now Michael Weinstein, who is president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, says a fourth performer disclosed HIV positive status privately. Weinstein says the male actor did not want to be named:
“I think he wanted to check out everybody that could be of any help to him. We gave him information but he’s not ready to come forward.”
But the Free Speech Coalition claims the fourth HIV positive performer story is meant to stir up fear and in turn, regulate the porn industry. In a statement, FSC spokeswoman Joanne Cachapero told HuffPo:
“We have no evidence of a fourth performer testing positive for HIV. This information came from AHF who is currently trying to push regulation on the industry… It is extremely likely that this situation is more posturing for AHF’s political agenda.”
The LA County Department of Public Health said that to their knowledge, a fourth porn HIV case has not been reported, but the department also cites privacy laws prohibiting further details.
Weinstein said that the failure to act and prevent HIV in porn is upsetting:
“It’s a slow-motion car wreck. Nobody wants to take responsibility… It doesn’t work trying to pin down who infected who. It’s a waste of time. There’s no separation between what people do on film or in their personal lives. If you don’t wear a seatbelt and you don’t wear a condom, eventually you’re likely to get hurt.”
He adds:
“I don’t know how much more evidence there needs to be that this is not working.”
The fourth porn star HIV rumors have not been confirmed, but the larger argument surrounds whether a condom requirement will pose a large threat to adult film profitability.
