Partner's lacking access to treatment

[Gregor]

If you test positive and have either money or insurance to get treated, that's great, but what about when your partner can't afford treatment, and they aren't on your insurance?

[Truth to Power]

If you test positive and have either money or insurance to get treated, that's great, but what about when your partner can't afford treatment, and they aren't on your insurance?

What an excellent question, and I bet this scenario comes up more often than we think. City/county health departments and STD clinics will often take care of this, so the first step is to check and see what's offered locally. Services will likely be free or at a reasonable cost. Planned Parenthood will also often offer services, not sure about cost but I don't think profit is their main motive, so this will likely be a reasonable choice.

Look for Planned Parenthood locations at Planned Parenthood.

Check for local clinics at National HIV and STD Testing Resources. Don't be put off the "hivtest" URL, as this is for all STDs.

Also, you can ask your clinic if it's legal in your state for the partner diagnosed to take meds home for the other person. A number of states offer this, primarily with chlamydia and gonorrhea.

[getSTDtested Administrator]

Truth to Power, you're right there are some city and county health departments that still offer free std testing, but they are getting fewer and harder to find because their budgets are being stretched. I know of no fewer than 10 departments of health that have closed their STD clinics due to lack of funding and I know those aren't the only ones. We've found that many clinics only offer limited testing options, experience long wait times, and can be intimidating to sit in an STD Clinic waiting room.

We've called several Planned Parenthood locations looking for free testing and have been unable to find it. Planned Parenthood uses a means based method to determine how much you should pay and we've been told to bring salary documentation. Male customers of our have told us men are pretty intimidated about visiting Planned Parenthood as well.

If you find yourself in this situation I would recommend you email us at help@dtcmd.com and explain your situation. We will work with you to find a solution where you can get tested at one of over 2000 local wellness centers (not an STD clinic) near you. No one will know you are there to get tested for an STD. You will get your results quickly and in many cases we can prescribe treatment to cure the infection.