Study Finds LA County Health Dept Reports on Adult Industry STI Data Flawed
 

FOR IMMEDIATE PUBLICATION
June 6, 2011

Study Finds LA County Health Dept Reports on Adult Industry STI Data Flawed, ?Without Basis in Science?

CANOGA PARK, Calif. ? Free Speech Coalition (FSC), the trade association for the adult entertainment industry in the U.S., today announced it has received a report from nationally renowned epidemiologist Lawrence S. Mayer MD, MS, PhD, establishes that data presented by the L.A. County Public Health Dept (LACPH) on rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) for adult industry performers is ?poorly documented? and ?without basis in science.?

Dr. Mayer currently is a professor at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health and School of Medicine, as well as a Professor of Biostatistics at Arizona State University and Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Arizona. Since 1998, he has served as a detective in the District Attorney?s Office of Maricopa County, AZ.

?Early in this process, CalOSHA?s Standards Board emphasized the need for an epidemiological analysis of the data surrounding the adult film industry and sexually transmitted infections. To date CalOSHA has had to rely on the inaccurate findings provided by LA County. Now we have information the Standards Board requested using the same scientific methodology that the Center for Disease Control utilizes,? FSC Executive Director Diane Duke said.

In the report, Dr. Mayer analyzes data given in presentations by LACPHD officials Robert Kim-Farley MD, MPH (who also is professor-in-residence at UCLA) and Peter Kerndt MD, MPH on estimated prevalence of gonorrhea, chlamydia and other STIs in the performer population within Los Angeles County, compared to statistics for infection in the general population.

Kim-Farley and Kerndt?s findings suggested that rates of STIs for performers vary from as much as 8 to 60 times more prevalent, in comparison to rates of infection for groups from the general population in Los Angeles County.

However, Mayer?s report concludes that the data presented by Kim-Farley and Kerndt is ?fundamentally flawed? and that the methodology used by the doctors to arrive at the estimated rates is invalid. Mayer points out that the statistics calculated by Kim-Farley and Kerndt also contradict each other?s presentations, as well as data contained in other reports on STIs released by LACPH.

Mayer claims that, since the vast majority of persons in LACDPH?s comparison groups are not even tested within any given year for any STIs (and may not be sexually active enough to risk infection), a much better comparison group would be comprised of persons who are frequently tested for infection, similar to adult performers. Utilizing this methodology, the rate of infection in sexually active young people in LA County may be up to ten times higher than Kerndt and Kim-Farley suggest, and not much higher than the supposed rates of adult performer infection.

Mayer?s report goes further to state:

? Kim-Farley and Kerndt did not reveal the methodology employed to derive the estimates they used in their calculations, and provided little or no citation for their data.
? Kerndt suggests, based on anecdotal evidence from ?industry sources? that there are 1200 adult performers in LA County, while Kim-Farley places the number at 2000-3000.
? Kim-Farley?s purported chlamydia rate of 1.8% for LA County stands in sharp contrast to other rates reported by his own agency, such as the 11.3% rate published in LACDPH?s 2008 STD Clinic Morbidity Report.
? Kerndt and Kim-Farley?s reports take into account neither re-infection rates nor performer re-testing.
? Kim-Farley?s method of estimating prevalence rates diverges sharply from that recommended by the CDC.
? Kerndt and Kim-Farley?s data, based upon similarly-aged subgroups and all ages, do not take into account the fact that many LA County residents are not tested each year for STIs.

FSC will present the report at the CalOSHA Advisory Subcommittee meeting scheduled for June 7, to be held at the CalTrans Bldg, 100 S. Main Street, in downtown Los Angeles. The meeting was called to discuss possible recommendations to be made to the CalOSHA Standards Board regarding workplace health and safety regulations for adult industry productions. FSC has been working with CalOSHA officials, regulatory compliance experts and adult industry stakeholders to develop industry-appropriate standards in order to protect the well being of the industry and its performers.

The actions follow last week?s announcement by LACPHD Director Dr. Jonathan Fielding in which he proposed a reorganization of the County?s Sexually Transmitted Infection program, headed by Kerndt. Fielding said that he hopes to improve the program?s efficiency and effectiveness. http://www.latimes.com/health/la-me-...,5765708.story

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) has waged a two-year campaign to mandate condom use on adult production sets. AHF has made allegations of ?epidemic? STI rates among performers, purportedly based on LA County health department statistics.

In 2009, after a performer referred to as ?Patient Zero,? tested positive for HIV, LACPH was forced to retract statements that alleged that up to 18 performers had tested positive for HIV since 2004. LACPH later admitted that it did not know whether these individuals had ever been performers or if they had merely been tested at Adult Industry Medical Health Care (AIM), a clinic that catered to adult industry clients but also served the general public. Long-targeted by AHF, AIM closed in April due to financial hardship. http://articles.latimes.com/2009/jun.../me-porn-hiv17

?It?s time to put political agendas aside and to tell the truth about the adult entertainment industry, and that is that our performers are valued, protected and safe,? Duke said.

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The Free Speech Coalition is the national trade organization to the adult entertainment industry. Its mission is to lead, protect and support the growth and well being of the adult entertainment community.

Please note that the first paragraph of the press release sent today should read:

Free Speech Coalition (FSC), the trade association for the adult entertainment industry in the U.S., today announced it has received a report from nationally renowned epidemiologist Lawrence S. Mayer MD, MS, PhD, that establishes that data presented by the L.A. County Public Health Dept (LACPH) on rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) for adult industry performers is ?poorly documented? and ?without basis in science.?

We apologize for any confusion.

FSC Team

not to hijack your thread, but isn't that the county with the 500 unsolved sex crimes dating back to 2005?

I have no idea how many unsolved sex crimes are in the Phoenix area.

I'd imagine that most major metropolitan areas have large numbers of unsolved sex crimes.

yea.. here is an update on it: http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/local_...red-sex-crimes

thank god this guy is on the case, in any case

Looks to me like Dr. Mayer's background includes service as a Professor of Biostatistics and Professor of Epidemiology at various universities.

I'd imagine that his duties are as different type of "detective" than that a individual rape case investigator: i.e. crime stats and trend analyses.

i would imagine as well

keeps good company it seems

So I can understand this correctly, the FSC is going to use this study to try and convince Cal-OSHA not to implement a barrier protection policy for the adult industry ?

Is that the gist of it ? If you know...

Polly busy arresting pot smokers and the like

believe the priority down there is illegal aliens?

they have a lot of issues with crime from the illegals... kidnappings, murders, drugs, slavery etc... they are trying to clean that up...

once that's cleaned up and the feds are able to actually put out a reasonable/realisitc immigration policy AZ can get back to putting away those fucking pot smokers :thumbsup

anywho...

let's say I work 100 hours a week, how much money do the illegal aliens have a right too? just curios what your thoughts are on that?

not sure the point of your question. i found it interesting the guy that is 'blowing the whistle' on reporting for our industry was a 'detective' for a DA that is sitting on 500 investigated cases of sex crimes

that is interesting HOWEVER a detective works for a police chief who works for a DA who is a political appointment etc... a det. can't set the agenda for a department... you know that.

why are you so interested in seeing the adult community attacked?

i am not sure what i know when it comes to how all that is structured. all i know is stats don't lie

not sure why you edited your post to add that last sentence, would need more information on what you mean

Rob, thanx for the information and thanx for always keeping us updated.:thumbsup


You know and I know this is like trying to stop a Freight Train with a water pistol.




I really don't seeing anything from stopping OSHA and AHF getting their way on this condom issue.


But at he end of the day, they can pass all the rules and laws as they want, it wont keep people from going underground and shooting condom-less porn. The industry will stay where it is physically but all visible adult goings-ons and Porn money that the state was once getting will disappear. Underground here we go...



California is pretty good at driving money and jobs away.:thumbsup

my job as well as many others are at stake here in the valley, the income we use to support our families etc... and you seem to try and find a reason or negative view of a possible good thing for us... just sayin is all :2 cents:

72% of all stats are made up

my apologies if you feel my objectiveness is solely based on negativity, i assure you, i am merely trying to keep the thread on top of the forum.

Kum-ba-ya, Lord, Kum-ba-ya!

The meeting is tomorrow.:thumbsup

10am the meeting starts.

<sarcasm> What a surprise! </sarcasm>