Celebrities need STD protection as well

 

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) can affect anyone, even celebrities. This may be one of the reasons why the cast of the reality television show Jersey Shore have a clause in their contract freeing their MTV producers from any responsibility for STDs that the cast potentially contracts during the course of filming the show.

According to New York Daily News, this clause means that if any of the young people on the show contract an STD during filming, the producers are not expected to cover their medical bills. The news source published a sample of the clause.

"Producer hereby informs me, and I acknowledge and accept, that the other participants have not been screened for any diseases, sicknesses or other health conditions (and specifically have not been tested for any sexually transmitted diseases) and I assume all risks of interacting with the other participants, including any consensual contact," states the clause, according to the information provider.

On the show, the young stars are often shown bringing strangers home from night clubs and presumably engaging in sexual activity with them. This type of promiscuity may increase their risk of contracting an STD, particularly if they are not practicing safer sex.

In 2010, the Hollywood Reporter stated that one Jersey Shore producer said that as a precaution, all of the young people on the set have regularly take a common herpes medication, though this claim has never been confirmed. Of course, if any of the cast is concerned about their infection status they can visit an STD testing center in New Jersey.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, individuals between the ages of 15 and 24 are responsible for half of all new STD infections each year. Most of the fans of the Jersey Shore are in this age range and they should be sure to know the importance of safer sex.