At-home STD tests

Sexually transmitted disease tests are now available at home for young women in four Bay Area counties.

As part of a pilot program intended to provide easy, convenient and embarrassment-free access to STD tests, women ages 18 to 30 in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco and San Mateo counties can send for a free kit that will test for chlamydia, gonorrhea and trichomoniasis, according to SFGate.com. Once 400 women are enrolled, scientists from the nonprofit research group RTI International will determine whether to continue the program.

The kit is available through www.iknowsfbay.org and includes a cotton swab, collection container and instructions to obtain a sample, which will be sent to Johns Hopkins University. The women will receive a text telling them their results are online—if the test is positive, they are given a prescription online to fill at the pharmacy of their preference.