For Immediate Release: October 28, 2021
Contact: Iman Karnabi, 336-830-2493, ikarnabi@ncsddc.org

Washington, DC – LetsGetChecked, a leading virtual care company, and the National Coalition of STD Directors (NCSD) are pleased to announce Check Yourself, a groundbreaking joint program to empower consumers and transform the way state and local health departments offer STD testing.

“Check Yourself will solve the difficult problem of easy access to STD testing for communities in need,” says David C. Harvey, NCSD executive director. “We view Check Yourself as an important tool to help combat health disparities. Safe and effective STD testing should be available to everyone and Check Yourself provides an avenue through which this can be achieved,” Harvey adds.

Reported STD cases in the U.S. reached an all-time high for the sixth consecutive year in 2019 and promises to be the same for 2020-2021. In addition, COVID-19 severely limited access to STD testing during the pandemic. Check Yourself is uniquely designed to expand capacity within state and local health departments and is the only home testing platform that meets the unique needs of health departments and integrates with surveillance systems and follow-up services, including partner treatment. The primary goal of Check Yourself is to reach individuals who might otherwise not get tested for STDs.

“Working with a national public health organization like NCSD is a critical next step towards ensuring health departments across the United States can expand their reach, and ensure people receive quality diagnostic testing for STDs,” said Peter Foley, Founder and CEO of LetsGetChecked. “The NCSD board of directors and I are thrilled to join forces with an innovative company like LetsGetChecked – a company that has a proven track record and commitment to excellence,” says David C. Harvey.

Check Yourself offers two kit delivery options. Health departments can initiate overnight kit delivery to patients or give kits to patients in person. Patients then collect their samples, return them to the laboratory using a prepaid shipping label, and receive their confidential results within days. Reporting will be integrated with state and local health department surveillance systems, ensuring timely follow-up for treatment.

NCSD is piloting Check Yourself with five public health departments, offering over 400 free test kits to participating health departments. Check Yourself will increase access to STD testing for all consumers, but especially uninsured and underinsured groups.