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I blame California with it's bastion of conservative Christianity and abstinence only sex-ed


TitanTiger

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"For California to have a steady increase in congenital syphilis is shameful," said Dr. Jeffrey Klausner, a professor of medicine at University of California, Los Angeles. He pointed to nations such as Cuba, Thailand and Belarus that have nearly eliminated the life-threatening infection seen in infants.

"We've known how to control syphilis since early 1900s. Seeing it come back like this is a sign of failure of the public health safety net," Klausner said.

Klausner placed much of the blame for the overall STD spike on what he called the "decimation" of public health infrastructure since the 2008 financial crisis. Funding slashed a decade ago hasn't been restored, leading to continued closing of clinics and collapse of education programs about risks and treatment options.

Dr. Heidi Bauer, chief of the state health department's STD Control Branch, agreed that budget issues are part of the problem. She estimated that about $20 million in state and federal money is allocated yearly to fighting STDs — a small number in a state with nearly 40 million residents.

Bauer also suggested the rise in STDs may be a symptom of more general problems in areas such as the economically hard-hit San Joaquin Valley where people are struggling with poverty, substance abuse, mental health issues and homelessness.

She also partially blamed the funneling of patients away from public health services toward primary care physicians under the Affordable Care Act.

"For sexual health, primary care wasn't the most effective method," Bauer said. Someone who depended on public clinics for STD screening and treatment may not want to discuss it with their doctor, or may not have a doctor at all, she said.

The health department is spearheading a "multi-pronged" effort to educate the public about the risks and get the word out to medical providers about the latest advances in screening and treatment, Bauer said.

Officials are also increasing efforts to follow up on cases, especially those involving pregnant women with syphilis, she said.

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I was being snarky.

But out of curiosity, are we seeing these same spikes in other states?  Were they all significantly less affected by the 2008 recession than CA?

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1 hour ago, TitanTiger said:

I was being snarky.

But out of curiosity, are we seeing these same spikes in other states?  Were they all significantly less affected by the 2008 recession than CA?

I figured as much.

Good question.

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On 5/15/2018 at 11:28 AM, TitanTiger said:

I was being snarky.

But out of curiosity, are we seeing these same spikes in other states?  Were they all significantly less affected by the 2008 recession than CA?

Quote

A sharp increase in syphilis so far in 2016 led the Alabama Department of Public Health to issue a health advisory syphilis in north Alabama.

The ADPH said there has been a 90 percent increase in reported cases of the sexually-transmitted disease over 2015 in Madison County.

The health department said 54 cases have been reported in Madison County in 2016.

https://www.al.com/news/huntsville/index.ssf/2016/11/health_department_issues_syphi.html

Yup, its raising in many places.

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