AHF: “Assembly’s Mike Gatto: Pornographers’ Best Friend in Sacramento”

Press Teleconference—TODAY—Thurs. Sept. 5, 2:00 pm

Gatto single-handedly blocks vote on statewide porn law AB 640;
100,000 calls blanket his district in final days of the legislative session.

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On the heels of the news of two recent HIV infections found in adult film performers working in California’s multi-billion dollar porn industry, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) will host a press teleconference TODAY, Thursday, September 5^th at 2:00 PM Pacific Time to announce a stepped up campaign targeting California Assemblymember Mike Gatto (D, 43^rd District), Chair of the Assembly’s Appropriations Committee, who is single-handedly blocking a California bill to protect the health of adult film workers throughout the state. As Appropriations Chair, Gatto put a hold on AB 640, authored by Assemblymember Isadore Hall, III, (D, 64^th District), which will require adult film performers to use condoms in adult film productions shot anywhere in California.

WHAT:	PRESS TELECONFERENCE (2:00 pm Pacific Time)
	Assembly’s Mike Gatto blocks statewide porn safety bill; 100,000 robo-calls to blanket Gatto’s district in final days of the legislative session
WHEN:	THURSDAY, September 5, 2013—2:00 PM (Pacific Time)
Teleconference—Dial in information +1.877.411.9748 participant code #7134323
WHO:	Michael Weinstein, AIDS Healthcare Foundation President
	Derrick Burts, former adult film performer infected with HIV while working in the industry
	Whitney Engeran-Cordova, Senior Director, AHF Public Health Division
CONTACTS:	Ged Kenslea, AHF Communications, [phone] cell, [phone] office

As part of AHF’s campaign, 100,000 telephone robo-calls are blanketing Gatto’s Southern California district (including Atwater Village, Burbank, Glendale, Hollywood, La Canada Flintridge, La Crescenta, Los Feliz, Montrose, and Silver Lake) urging his constituents to call Gatto and demand that he free AB 640 from his hold and let it come to a vote immediately before anyone else is harmed. The pre-recorded calls are voiced by Derrick Burts, a former adult film performer infected with HIV while working in the industry in 2010, and Rebekka Armstrong, an HIV-positive Playboy Bunny.

About AIDS Healthcare Foundation

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to nearly 230,000 individuals in 32 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region and Eastern Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: www.aidshealth.org, find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare