With an STI epidemic on the rise in the state, California has now become the first to require health insurance plans to cover at-home tests for sexually transmitted infections such as HIV, chlamydia and syphilis. The push is an effort to stop the rising cases of STIs that have raged nearly unchecked, while public health departments have set their focus on covid-19.
The rule took effect Jan. 1 for people with state-regulated private insurance plans and will kick in for the millions of low-income Californians enrolled in the state’s Medicaid program sometime later this year.
The hope is to make it easier and more affordable for Californians to self-administer tests in the privacy of their homes, so that the health department can better monitor rates in rural and underserved areas of the state, reduce the stigma patients experience, and encourage proper treatment.
“This is the first law of its kind, and I’d say it’s kind of cutting-edge,” said Stephanie Arnold Pang, senior director of policy and government relations for the National Coalition of STD Directors.
“We want to bring down every single barrier for someone to get STI testing, and out-of-pocket cost is a huge factor,” Pang explained.
