Gary Herbert (R-UT), who has served as the Republican governor of the Utah since 2009, has halted an HIV prevention program that gives away taxpayer-funded condoms after it was brought to his attention that the program was using state-themed packaging laden with sexual innuendo.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Herbert’s office released a statement Wednesday affirming that the governor understands the importance of the HIV prevention campaign, but that he refuses to “approve the use of sexual innuendo as part of a taxpayer-funded campaign.”
The packaging for the condoms consisted of a wide array of Utah-themed puns and sexual innuendos and included artistic renditions of locations around the state in a minimalist style.
One package showed what appears to be Arches National Park and a slogan that reads “put your arch into it,” while another featured an adventurer with a flashlight and a slogan declaring “explore Utah’s caves.” A particularly obscene one displayed an abbreviation for Salt Lake City, Utah, superimposed on a graphic of the state, but with the “C” for “city” omitted and Utah abbreviated.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Utah Department of Health apologized for the “lewd nature of the branding” campaign.
“The Utah Department of Health apologizes for the offensive packaging included on condoms distributed as part of an HIV campaign. The designs did not go through necessary approval channels and we have asked our partners to stop distributing them immediately,” reads the statement. “We regret the lewd nature of the branding.”
“We remain committed to running a campaign to help in the prevention of HIV and intend to do so in a manner that better respects taxpayer dollars, and our role as a government agency,” concludes the statement.
The Utah Department of Health apologizes for the offensive packaging included on condoms distributed as part of an HIV campaign. The designs did not go through necessary approval channels and we have asked our partners to stop distributing them immediately. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/jC9l4Fs0oh
— Utah Dept. of Health (@UtahDepOfHealth) January 16, 2020
NBC News reports that the program had commissioned 100,000 condoms, but it is currently unclear how many have already been distributed.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, the distribution used federal grants and was part of a collaboration with “The H is for Human” campaign, which promotes HIV awareness. The news agency reports that HIV has become “less prevalent than it once was in Utah,” as only about 120 new cases are reported each year.
According to a report published by the Utah Department of Health in 2000, more than 25 people per 100,000 residents were being diagnosed with HIV in Utah as of 1990. By 2000, the figure had declined to fewer than 10 people per 100,000, and by 2010, the figure had declined to 3.3 people per 100,000 — slightly lower than the current transmission rate in the state.
However, Utah isn’t the first place to run a state-themed raunchy condom campaign to prevent the spread of STDs.
In 2012, the Alaska State Legislature allocated money to curb rates of gonorrhea and chlamydia. Similar to the Utah campaign, the Alaska campaign involved branding with state-themed sexual innuendo, including a fishing boat with the slogan “avoid bycatch,” a skier with the slogan “meet you at the bottom,” and an oil rig with the slogan “drill safely.”