Guest Opinion: With skyrocketing STI rates, LGBTQ+ Californians need a pathway to equitable health care
As COVID-19 cases are back on the rise, California and the U.S. continue to face another public health epidemic that is going in the wrong direction — sexually transmitted infections.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released data that reported nearly 2.5 million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis in 2020 nationwide.
California has the most reported cases of STIs across the nation, and San Francisco has the unfortunate distinction of having the third-highest STI rate in the state.Nearly 350,000 Californians contracted an STI in 2019 — a 30-year high.
In recent years, gonorrhea rates have increased by 211% and chlamydia rates by 56%. Since 2010, there has been an alarming rise in syphilis and congenital syphilis rates, with increases of 265% and 600%, respectively.
