Cameron Bay, Porn Star, Tests Positive For HIV; Adult Film Industry Halts Until Others Are Tested
A 28-year-old porn star by the name of Cameron Bay tested positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), bringing the porn industry to a halt until all of her sexual partners are tested. This could involve testing up to thousands of people.
“As difficult as this news is for me today, I am hopeful that no other performers have been affected,” Bay said in a release. “I plan on doing everything possible to assist the medical professionals and my fellow performers. Following that, my long term plan is to take care of myself and my health.”
Diane Duke, executive director of the porn industry trade group Free Speech Coalition, told the Associated Press that she did not believe the virus was transmitted on set.
The Adult Production Health & Safety Services (APHSS), which provides the porn industry’s guidelines for safety in the workplace, offers testing and medical providers for performers. Although there have only been two reported cases of HIV in the porn industry since 2004, past scares of sexually transmitted infections have led to moratoriums, or halts, of all porn industry production, until other performers were tested. Last year, several adult stars were infected with syphilis, which paused production temporarily.
About a week ago, the Safer Sex in the Adult Film Industry Act (Measure B), a law requiring porn performers to use condoms, was ruled constitutional. Adult film producers and the Free Speech Coalition had attempted to block the Los Angeles County law by claiming it was unconstitutional. The Free Speech Coalition states on its website that it is “the watchdog for the adult entertainment industry guarding against unconstitutional and oppressive government intervention.”
However, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health released data that showed over 2,000 cases of chlamydia and over 1,000 cases of gonorrhea within the porn industry, which has caused concerns for acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) groups.
“How many adult film performers have to become infected with an array of preventable sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, which is not curable, before the porn industry actually complies with the law requiring condom use,” AIDS Healthcare Foundation president Michael Weinstein said in a statement.
Though there was clear disappointment among porn industry producers, Weinstein lauded the ruling on the Safer Sex in the Adult Film Industry Act, saying it “is just a tremendous, tremendous victory, one that will go a long way to safeguard the health and safety of those adult performers working in the industry.”