LOS ANGELES—Professional adult entertainers once again have access to affordable health and accident/disability insurance, thanks to the group rates now available to International Entertainment Adult Union members. The policies are being offered by GoHealth, National Association of Preferred Providers (N.A.P.P.), and American Workers Insurance Services (A.W.I.S.) through the I.E.A.U. website at entertainmentadultunion.com. Employer-sponsored plans are also available through GoHealth for companies that wish to provide health insurance to talent.
“We’re not just here for collective bargaining to work out new deals for performers. We are also very passionate about protecting them ourselves, even when nobody else will,” said I.E.A.U. founder Phyllisha Anne. “One way or another, we’re going to make sure our members have everything they need to stay healthy and productive. Need to go to rehab? Catch an infection that keeps you from working? You’ll be covered.”
The I.E.A.U. offerings are the first of their kind to a vulnerable segment of the working class traditionally ignored by mainstream insurance carriers. With the passing of the ACA, as well as growing acceptance of adult work, new benefits for workers in adult-oriented industries are being secured, even as many employers continue to refuse to provide worker benefits.
The I.E.A.U. is a non-profit labor organization registered with the Department of Labor in 2015. It is a union registered to organize adult industry employees in the United States. Technically, an "adult industry" is any in which one must be 18 years of age or older to work. Cocktail waitresses, bartenders, tattoo artists, non-professional UFC fighters, boxers, bouncers, security guards, live webcam workers are just some of the workers eligible to develop new chapters.
