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Free (or low-cost) STD testing in NYC: where to go and what to expect
By Slava Fuzayloff | Published on June 25, 2023
This article is about free or low-cost STD testing and treatment options in NYC. Here we will summarize and compare different options New Yorkers and our city guests have when free STD testing or treatment is needed.
We compare different clinics so you will have all the practical information necessary to make an informed decision.
Let’s start!
What are the free and low-cost STD options in NYC?
Free or low-cost STD testing in New York City can be provided by different types of health facilities.
Some of them are more specialized in sexual health and STD testing and treatment than others.
STD specialized clinic
✓ Planned parenthood clinics.
✓ Community sexual health clinics
Nonspecialized health clinics where STDs can be tested and treated as well.
✓ Community health care network clinic
✓ APICHA clinic
✓ Callen-Lorde clinic
✓ Student -run free clinic
All these low-cost or free health clinics are non-profit and funded by both government and private individual/funds. As an example:
✓ Community clinics are funded by the NYC department of health.
✓ Planned parenthood clinics are sponsored by private individuals and large national funds (e.g.: Melinda and Bill Gates, buffet foundation, Ford foundation, etc.) as well as federal government funds.
What is the role of free and low-cost STD clinic?
These clinics play a major role in controlling the STD spread in New York:
✓ It allows people with any type of income and immigration status to get tested and treated for STDs.
✓ It prevents the STD spread and complication and reduces the ultimate health care cost for the country tremendously.
✓ Educates people in need about sexual and reproductive health
Number of free or low-cost STD clinics in NYC
NYC has more than 30 free or low-cost STD testing and treatment places.
✓ Community STD clinics.
clinic located in four NYC boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and Bronx
✓ Planned parenthood clinics
One clinic located in each NYC borough: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island.
✓ Community health care network clinics
14 clinics located in five NYC boroughs, mostly in underserved areas.
✓ Four Callen Lorde clinics located in 5 NYC boroughs.
✓ One APICHA Clinic
STD stats in NYC
Here we are giving you basic statistics on major reportable STDs. [1] Sexually Transmitted Infections Surveillance Report New York State 2021 https://www.health.ny.gov/statistics/diseases/communicable/std/docs/sti_surveillance_report_2021.pdf
✓ HIV
✓ Syphilis
✓ Chlamydia
✓ Gonorrhea
The reporting is done automatically by labs within 24 hours. It is done to allocate limited financial resources where they are needed the most to stop the spread by notifying and treating partners.
The information below represents only the portion of the true STI cases in NYC that should be reported.
- Many cases of HIV, syphilis, chlamydia, and gonorrhea go undiagnosed.
- And several very common STDs, such as HPV, genital herpes, mycoplasma, and trichomoniasis, are not reported at all.
HIV
The number of newly diagnosed cases for HIV in NYC has decreased by 51% from 2011 to 2020. Total number of newly diagnosed HIV cases in NYC in 2020 is 1091
Chlamydia
Chlamydia became reportable STIs since 2000 and has been the most common STDs since.
The highest rate is among females 15-24 years of age. The number of chlamydia cases increase by about 3% annually.
Gonorrhea
The number of gonorrhea cases increased by 9.6% in 2020. The rate is higher among males age 20-34, and among females age 15-24
Syphilis
The number of syphilis diagnosis (both primary and secondary) increased by 8% in 2019.
“STD specialized” clinics in New York City
Here we are comparing the services provided by two most popular New York City “STD specialized” testing and treatment facilities:
✓ New York City community health clinics [2] Sexual Health Clinics https://www.nyc.gov/site/doh/services/sexual-health-clinics.page
✓ Planned Parenthood Clinics [3] Health centers in New York https://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-center/new-york/new-york
We called them “STD specialized” in this article since most of the patients at those clinics are seen for STD testing and treatment or sexual health issues.
Both abovementioned facilities provide services in other areas of sexual health and reproduction, besides STD testing and treatment.
The comparison information below for each facility was obtained by calling their hotline number:
✓ NYC community clinic hot line number: 347-396-7959 (Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.)
✓ Planned parenthood hot line number:800-258-4448
What STD testing and treatment can be provided by “specialized” low-cost clinics?
All testing facilities follow CDC guidance regarding STD testing and treatment. [7] Screening Recommendations and Considerations Referenced in Treatment Guidelines and Original Sources https://www.cdc.gov/std/treatment-guidelines/screening-recommendations.htm This means that it is mostly common, serious conditions that are tested and treated by the free facilities.
In the infographics below, we have summarized the diseases that can be tested (HIV, syphilis, chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, herpes, molluscum, HPV);the types of testing that can be done (blood, urine, or swab); and the treatment that can be provided by the two biggest free or low-cost facilities, NYC community clinics [2] Sexual Health Clinics https://www.nyc.gov/site/doh/services/sexual-health-clinics.page and Planned Parenthood [3] Health centers in New York https://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-center/new-york/new-york
What STDs are not routinely tested for and treated by “specialized” low-cost clinics?
As mentioned earlier, free clinics follow CDC guideline [10] Screening recommendations https://www.cdc.gov/std/treatment-guidelines/screening-recommendations.htm for routine STD testing and treatment, and they have very limited funds, so they don’t do all possible STD tests.
Some tests, such as the herpes IgG blood test, are not done at all. Other tests, such as for mycoplasma (urine and swab), ureaplasma (urine and swab), and herpes (swab) are done at the examining provider’s discretion on the basis of clinical signs and symptoms. Patients cannot request that those tests be done as part of routine screening (“just in case”). In addition, some locations don’t offer them at all.
Sometimes, even when testing cannot be done, treatment can be offered, such as for a herpes outbreak.
The infographic below summarizes the testing and treatment options for non-routine STD tests available in free and low-cost clinics.
[2, 3]
Sexual Health Clinics
https://www.nyc.gov/site/doh/services/sexual-health-clinics.page
Health centers in New York
https://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-center/new-york/new-york
Customer service and clinical expertise comparison
In this section, we will compare non-medical aspects of the two biggest low-cost clinics, Planned Parenthood and NYC community clinics.
The infographic below compares these features:
✓ Convenience of scheduling an appointment
✓ Appointment availability
✓ Walk-in service
✓ Test turnaround time
✓ Documentation needed for the appointment.
Cost comparison
STD services (testing and treatment) provided by at NYC community health clinics and Planned Parenthood can be free or low cost depending on the patient’s age and income and the availability of health insurance.
Some sort of payment is encouraged by both types of facilities since they have limited funds and want to help as many people in need as possible.
The infographic below summarizes service cost for: Insured people, self-pay, and those who cannot afford to pay
List of STD specialized clinics in five NYC boroughs.
The infographic below summarizes a complete list of addresses and other contact information for clinics.
The list is divided into NYC community sexual health clinics and Planned Parenthood clinics.
Non-specialized Sexually Transmitted Disease testing and treatment facilities in New York City
NYC has low-cost health facilities that can provide STD testing and treatment services:
✓ Community health care network clinic [4] Community health care network: Location https://www.chnnyc.org/locations/
✓ APICHA clinic [6] Apicha community health center https://www.apicha.org/en/home
✓ Callen-Lorde clinic [5] Callen-Lorde https://callen-lorde.org/
✓ Student-run clinics [9] NYC free clinic https://nycfreeclinic.com/
We are calling them “non-STD specialized” facilities in this article because STD testing and treatment is a small part of what they do.
All these clinics have a few things in common:
Funding
Funding for their services is provided by:
✓ Federal government funds
✓ Private funds
Services provided
✓ Most of these places are multi-specialty clinics that provide various health services, such as primary care, dental, and mental health services.
✓ STD testing is one of the services they provide, usually not their primary service.
✓ All types of STD testing and treatment are provided (similar to Planned Parenthood)
Service cost
The business model of these clinics is similar to that of Planned Parenthood clinics (see the information in the cost comparison section above):
✓ All health insurance is accepted (commercial, state, and federally funded). No referral is needed.
✓ The facilities help uninsured people (if they qualify) to apply for health insurance or get into other federal programs that help with costs of services.
✓ Income-based sliding-scale fees are offered for uninsured patients.
Fees can range from $0 to $100.
Proof of income is usually requested at the time of the appointment to determine the fees.
✓ Low-cost lab fees from major lab companies are offered ($50 to $150).
Lab fees are in addition to sliding-scale visit fees.
✓ Low-cost medication fees from participating pharmacies are offered.
Medication fees are in addition to sliding-scale visit fees.
List of low-cost non-STD specialized clinics in New York City
The infographic below summarizes a list of non-specialized free or low-cost clinics in NYC.
The following information for each of the clinic is provided:
✓ Website
✓ Number of clinic locations
✓ Level of expertise
✓ Appointment types available
✓ Documents needed to be eligible for their services.
Source
STDCenterNY uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles.
-
Sexually Transmitted Infections Surveillance Report New York State 2021
https://www.health.ny.gov/statistics/diseases/communicable/std/docs/sti_surveillance_report_2021.pdf -
Sexual Health Clinics
https://www.nyc.gov/site/doh/services/sexual-health-clinics.page -
Health centers in New York
https://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-center/new-york/new-york -
Community health care network: Location
https://www.chnnyc.org/locations/ -
Callen-Lorde
https://callen-lorde.org/ -
Apicha community health center
https://www.apicha.org/en/home -
Screening Recommendations and Considerations Referenced in Treatment Guidelines and Original Sources
https://www.cdc.gov/std/treatment-guidelines/screening-recommendations.htm -
STI treatment guideline
https://www.cdc.gov/std/treatment-guidelines/default.htm -
NYC free clinic
https://nycfreeclinic.com/ - https://www.cdc.gov/std/treatment-guidelines/screening-recommendations.htm
