(HEALTH) Health Department Expands At-Home STI Testing Program

PITTSBURGH – Since November 2022, the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) has been piloting an at-home chlamydia and gonorrhea testing program to determine the value of more accessible at-home STI testing for residents. For the past six months, at-home chlamydia and gonorrhea tests were only available to residents 18-24 years of age because individuals in that age range are at the highest risk for acquiring an STI. Due to the early success of the initiative, eligibility has been expanded to all residents over the age of 18 in Allegheny County.

“Our at-home chlamydia and gonorrhea testing pilot project has been successful, both in terms of increasing access to STI testing, as well as providing treatment for patients,” said ACHD medical director Dr. Barbara Nightingale. “It is the right time to open up eligibility for all residents who may want, or need, to test for STIs.”

Residents can go online to request a test be mailed to their home or go to Hilltop Pharmacy (818 East Warrington Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15210) for assistance in requesting one. Residents can then provide a sample, mail it back to the lab and review their results online in the privacy of their own homes. If a resident tests positive for either disease, a member of the Health Department will contact them and provide treatment options and resources, which could include choosing treatment at a community pharmacy.

Chlamydia and gonorrhea are common sexually transmitted infections. In Allegheny County in 2021, 2,398 cases of gonorrhea were diagnosed, a six percent increase from the previous year. In 2021, the Health Department also confirmed 5,715 cases of chlamydia, a one percent increase from the previous year.

Chlamydia and gonorrhea are treatable with medication prescribed by a health care provider. Diagnosing the infection early can help limit the immediate discomfort of symptoms and reduce the spread of the infection to others.

“Expanding testing to all adults will help residents to identify if they have an infection and be able to seek treatment to cure it,” remarked Nightingale. “Home testing eliminates many of the barriers that residents have accessing testing and treatment such as transportation and stigmas around STIs.”

Upon the successful completion of the expanded pilot, the ACHD anticipates that it will establish a home testing program that also includes other sexually acquired infections, such as syphilis and HIV.

Color Health, ACHD’s partner in the at-home STI testing program, mail the tests, perform lab testing on specimens, and provide results to residents. Color is a complete platform for health care delivery, providing the technology, infrastructure, and logistics required to distribute large-scale health initiatives to diverse populations. The organization works to provide equitable, accessible health care services. Color supports access for traditionally underserved communities and removes barriers to accessing care.