A sudden loss in state and local health department funding has resulted in the rise of sexually transmitted disease (STD) transmission across the United States.
In June, health departments found out the final two years of a $1 billion investment to track and prevent STDs was being canceled. This funding was canceled as part of the national debt ceiling deal passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden.
In Nevada alone, congenital syphilis transmission increased by 44% from 2021 to 2022. Mississippi and Texas are other stations that have seen similar increases. Syphilis transmission reached a low point in 2000 but has increased almost every year since.