Box Turtle Bulletin

Michael Weinstein doubles down on “PrEP = Party Drug”; lies about video

Public Health Solutions is a NYC based non-profit that performs both research and outreach on public health matters. As part of their focus, they support the increased use of pre-exposure prophylaxis as a prevention for the transmission of HIV.

A couple of months ago, Public Health Solutions uploaded three videos to their YouTube channel; one about PrEP and love, one targeting African-American men, and one targeting young men who party. The videos were part of a video intended to drive high-risk individuals into a clinical survey.

Here is “I Like to Party”:

Although the visuals of the video only show drinking in a bar, the implied message is that some young men use substances as a part of sex. And, indeed, the video campaign deviser said as much. (HuffPo)

The “Time2PrEP” campaign from Public Health Solutions is a series of video shorts that talks to different individuals across the queer spectrum about their experiences with PrEP and why they utilize the groundbreaking medication. Kenny Neal Shults of ConnectedHealthSolutions.com told The Huffington Post:

“When we sat down to consider the best audiences for the campaigns we knew only one thing for certain — we wanted to address gay men who might fall under the puritanical ‘Truvada Whore’ classification. That is, we wanted to reach men whose sexual and recreational drug behaviors both put them at a greater risk for both contracting HIV and being stigmatized for even considering going on PrEP. It seemed obvious to us that judging the men who could benefit most from PrEP for the behaviors that we think they should abandon and replace with consistent, unfaltering condom use was not our job. Our goal as HIV prevention professionals is to reduce HIV infections, and to communicate to those at high risk that they don’t deserve to be punished with HIV for ‘misbehaving.’ I mean, that’s the tacit implication of these reactionary pulpit platforms isn’t it; you either use a condom every time — behave — or you’re shamed and set apart from the rest of the community.”

Today it seems that Michael Weinstein of AIDS Healthcare Foundation has become aware of the video. And he’s decided to use it to further his attack on PrEP and those who use it. And, as seems consistent with Weinstein, his statement is long on accusation and short on facts.

AHF’s press release starts with a statement that is shockingly lacking in truth.

In what looks to be the first direct-to-consumer drug advertising paid for by Gilead Sciences, Inc. for use of its AIDS treatment, Truvada, as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV infection in non-infected individuals, Gilead has paid for an ad that violates Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines for PrEP by promoting off-label use of the drug by encouraging situational PrEP use for those who “… like to party.”

Oh so many lies.

First this is not a direct-to-customer drug advertising. It is an online video by a non-profit organization that never ever mentions the name of any drug.

Next, the video was not “paid for by Gilead Sciences, Inc.”, or not in the sense that Weinstein claims. Mary Ann Chiasson, the Vice President, Research and Evaluation at Public Health Solutions clarified.

As the Project Director, I can set the record straight. The time2prep project was funded by a grant from Gilead for educational videos about PrEP targeted to high risk men who have sex with men in New York City. The videos were designed to be provocative and to encourage men to go the New York City Department of Health PrEP/PEP website to learn more. Gilead played no role whatsoever in determining the content of the videos. In fact, I’m not sure anyone at Gilead has ever even seen the videos.

But the big lie, the heinous smarmy lie is this: “…an ad that violates Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines for PrEP by promoting off-label use of the drug by encouraging situational PrEP use…” Further in the press release, Weinstein states,

When I referred to PrEP as a party drug two years ago, it created a nationwide scandal. Now Gilead—in what looks to be its first official paid advertising for Truvada as PrEP—explicitly promotes PrEP as a party drug for situational use in direct violation of FDA regulations. This is illegal and we will seek to hold them accountable for their irresponsible and illegal advertising,” said Michael Weinstein, President of AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which has criticized and cautioned against the widespread deployment of PrEP as a community-wide public health strategy, such as the CDC’s recommendation that 1.2 million individuals go on PrEP, but supports its use on a case-by-case basis decided upon between a medical provider and his or her patient.

If indeed this was a promotion of PrEP for situational use, rather than as part of a daily regimen, that would be in violation of FDA regulations. The FDA has approved Truvada for PrEP under certain conditions. While I would certainly phrase some of these requirement differently, AHF’s press release lists them:

Guidelines issued by the FDA for PrEP for individuals include 1) an initial baseline negative HIV test; 2) daily adherence to the Truvada medication; 3) ongoing periodic HIV testing to ensure the individual on PrEP remains HIV-negative; and 4) continued use of other prevention methods, such as condoms.

AHF’s points 1 and 3 cannot be determined one way or another from the video. But we can clearly see whether the video promotes daily adherence and condoms.

At 0:03 JD Phoenix (a young porn actor) reaches for items on his counter as he heads to a bar. They consist of condoms, lube, his keys and a baggie with pills of some sort (it is not clear as to the nature of the pills). From this we conclude that condoms are a part of Phoenix’s sexual encounters.

At 0:21 Phoenix’ alarm goes off on his phone informing him that it’s “time to prep!” He then reaches for a daily pill organizer and takes that day’s blue pill. From this it is clear that Phoenix is on daily adherence to the drug.

So Weinstein’s claims about “situational use” appear to be false. And his threat about “holding accountable” seem nothing more than empty threats used to bolster his own implied moral superiority.

And, of course, Weinstein couldn’t pass up the opportunity to portray himself as a great prophet:

It now appears AHF President Michael Weinstein made a prophetic comment to an Associated Press reporter in April 2014 when he offhandedly referred to PrEP as a “… party drug.” Since then, both he and AHF have been repeatedly and harshly criticized by the gay and AIDS communities for the observation, while Gilead itself now funds and promotes party use of Truvada as PrEP in violation of the law and FDA regulation.

Neither Gilead nor anyone else is promoting “party use” of Truvada as PrEP in this video. Or certainly not more than the other two videos promoted “black use” or “love use.” It’s a video targeting a high-risk community. That’s all.

But Weinstein has latched only the word “party” and sees it as validation for his opposition to PrEP. He objects to the idea that people who use drugs might use Truvada to allow them to have unfettered sex. Naughty dirty drug-induced porn star sex. And it’s “irresponsible” for Gilead, or anyone else, to help these party sex people remain HIV negative.

It’s hard to ignore the implications of Weinstein’s position. If party people shouldn’t proactively protect themselves from HIV transmission, does that mean that they deserve what they get? Is HIV the wages of sin?

And, really, it seems to me that this is what is behind Weinstein’s campaign of shame, it’s all about demonizing people who have sex in ways of which Weinstein disapproves.

And I don’t think the prophet reference is casual. I think that is how he sees himself, as a great moral leader casting down as whores and riffraff those who oppose him and declaring the one and only true and holy way to have sex.