By CHUCK BENNETT
June 9, 2008
The federal government's plan to rewrite condom labels could turn people off using them, a public-health expert said yesterday.
The Government Accountability Office says the label may be altered to specifically convey that condoms must be "used correctly every time" and are less effective against diseases like genital herpes and the human papillomavirus.
"If the messaging is fear-based it could turn people off using condoms," warned Fred Wyand of the American Social Health Association, a public policy group focusing on sexually transmitted diseases.
