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STD cases are at an all-time high in the US - because of homosexuals

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The number of cases of sexually transmitted infections (STI) 
reported in the US in 2015 is at an all-time high, according to 
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That’s 
because budget cuts to state and local STI programs have left 
fewer people with access to testing and treatment, the agency 
says.

"We’re very concerned about these unprecedented high number of 
cases of STIs in the United States," Gail Bolan, the director of 
the CDC's Division of Sexually Transmitted Disease Prevention, 
tells The Verge. "These new number are making it really clear 
that many Americans are not getting the preventive services they 
need."

In 2015, there were more than 1.5 million reported cases of 
chlamydia (up nearly 6 percent since 2014), about 400,000 cases 
of gonorrhea (up nearly 13 percent), and about 24,000 cases of 
primary and secondary syphilis (up 19 percent), according to a 
report released today by the CDC. These three diseases are also 
the most commonly reported sexually transmitted infections (also 
known as sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs) in the US.

Chlamydia is an infectious disease that affects both men and 
women, but is particularly dangerous for women. If left 
untreated, it can make it difficult or impossible for women to 
get pregnant later on. Gonorrhea can lead to lasting health 
problems like infertility, long-term abdominal pain in women, 
and even death if the infection spreads to a person’s blood or 
joints. And syphilis can create skin rashes and sores, and can 
damage the brain, nerves, and heart if left untreated. (Syphilis 
is divided into four stages: primary, secondary, latent, and 
late.)

All three STDs can be cured with antibiotics, but drug-resistant 
versions of the disease are much more dangerous and harder to 
treat. In July, the CDC announced that gonorrhea may soon become 
resistant to the only two antibiotics left to treat it. "We’re 
very concerned about the threat of untreatable gonorrhea," Bolan 
says. Chlamydia and syphilis are also increasingly becoming 
resistant to antibiotics, according to the World Health 
Organization.

The uptick in the number of cases is caused by reduced access to 
STD testing and treatment, the CDC says. More than half of state 
and local STD programs have experienced budget cuts, the agency 
says, and more than 20 health department STD clinics closed in 
one year alone. Sexually transmitted infections cost the US 
health care system nearly $16 billion each year, according to 
the CDC.

"We have reached a decisive moment for the nation," Jonathan 
Mermin, director of CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral 
Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, said in a statement. "STD 
rates are rising, and many of the country’s systems for 
preventing STDs have eroded. We must mobilize, rebuild and 
expand services — or the human and economic burden will continue 
to grow."

Young people, as well as gay and bisexual men, are most at risk 
of contracting an STD. In 2015, about two-thirds of chlamydia 
diagnoses and half of gonorrhea diagnoses were among Americans 
ages 15 to 24 years old. Men who have sex with men accounted for 
the majority of new gonorrhea and primary and secondary syphilis 
cases. But women’s rate of syphilis diagnosis also increased by 
more than 27 percent during that period. That’s concerning 
because pregnant women who have syphilis can pass the infection 
onto babies, causing the baby to be born dead or have 
developmental problems.

The only way to respond to the increasing number of STD cases is 
to expand access to screening and treatment, according to the 
CDC. "STD prevention resources across the nation are stretched 
thin, and we’re beginning to see people slip through the public 
health safety net," said Mermin. "Turning the STD epidemics 
around requires bolstering prevention efforts and addressing new 
challenges — but the payoff is substantial in terms of improving 
health, reducing disparities and saving billions of dollars."

Update October 19th 04:41PM ET: The story has been updated to 
include comments from Gail Bolan, the director of the CDC's 
Division of Sexually Transmitted Disease Prevention.

SOURCE: CDC

https://www.cdc.gov/std/stats15/default.htm

http://www.theverge.com/2016/10/19/13331854/sexually-transmitted-
infections-chlamydia-gonorrhea-syphilis-increasing
  

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STD cases are at an all-time high in the US - because of homosexuals "Fudge Farts" <brownstew@gladd.org> - 2016-11-05 10:47 +0100

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