Will Las Vegas porn stars be required to wear condoms like brothel workers?

By Andrea Domanick

Friday, Jan. 23, 2015 | 2 a.m.

The Adult Video News Awards and Entertainment Expo is back in Las Vegas this week, and with more than 30,000 attendees and 180 exhibitors, the X-rated event is enjoying its largest turnout in years. But news that a condom mandate for adult entertainers could come to Southern Nevada has people concerned the region’s potential porn boom might be over before it begins.

After reports surfaced late last year that two male performers contracted HIV during an adult film shoot in Nevada, state health officials are considering tighter safety regulations on porn sets, including requiring condoms.

A similar mandate in Los Angeles County a few years back compelled some adult film companies to move production elsewhere. A growing number in the $6 billion industry are choosing Las Vegas. The city's appeal has only increased after an appeals court upheld the Los Angeles ordinance in December.

State health officials now are considering adopting regulations for the adult film industry similar to those used in Nevada’s legal brothels, including condom use and regular testing. There has never been a reported transmission of HIV in a Nevada brothel.

Other potential options include mandatory testing for sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, and requiring permits for adult filming. Unlike Los Angeles County, which closely tracks and regulates shoots, Nevada requires no permits or notification for filming on private property.

“{There's) no timeline at this point," Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman Mary Woods said. "Regulations can take up to two years but ideally less than that. Any regulation will require a series of public workshops and enough time to allow and incorporate feedback.”

People in porn say comparing movie production to brothels isn't fair.

“It’s not the same,” said Michael Stabile, a spokesman for the San Francisco-based adult film company Kink, which has an office in Las Vegas. “(In brothels,) you’re dealing with an untested public. (Condom use) makes much more sense for brothels than adult film sets, where performers are getting tested regularly.”

Performers also argue that using condoms during long shoots can result in breakage and microscopic abrasions that can make them more susceptible to infection.

In Los Angeles, the passage of Measure B, which introduced the condom mandate in 2012, was followed by a sharp decline in film permits: 485 in 2012 to 50 in 2013. Industry watchers say the same thing could happen in Las Vegas; a condom requirement here could compel companies to relocate to Florida or Oregon, which also have burgeoning adult film industries and don’t require condoms for porn shoots.

But even as condom talk swirls, many adult film companies aren’t willing to give up on Nevada. They say the performers acquired HIV because they failed to follow industry safety protocols. With such precautions, the porn industry hasn't seen an on-set transmission of HIV in 10 years.

Porn workers say communication must be improved between performers and local health officials. If industry representatives aren't involved in finding solutions, Nevada’s adult film industry could move underground, like many companies in L.A. have done, which can make conditions even more dangerous for performers.

“One of the things we have to start doing in Nevada ... is work and talk with local health departments,” Stabile said. “When we come into cities, there’s a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding of what the protocols are and what the facts on the ground are. We know these issues are complex, the science is complex, and we need to sit down with the department of public health and maybe even legislators."

"Certainly a condom mandate would make Nevada less appealing," Stabile added. "But it’s far from that at this point. Those conversations are just beginning.”​

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