Illinois: Chicago Public Schools to Test Teens for STDs

The Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH) is planning to launch a pilot STD education, testing, and treatment project in six Chicago high schools. The county will conduct testing for 11th- and 12th-graders at no cost to Chicago Public Schools (CPS). The plan was approved by the Board of Education in late June

Teens account for many of Cook County's new chlamydia and gonorrhea diagnoses. In 2007, Cook County had 12,338 reported gonorrhea cases, ranking first among US counties with 233 cases per 100,000 population, according to CDC. That same year, the county's chlamydia rate was 583 per 100,000 population, second only to Los Angeles County.

"It's a very large problem with teens and adolescents in Chicago, and it's very, very important that they get the information about these [STDs]," said Christopher Brown, CCDPH assistant commissioner. "Our goal is to get the information out to teens, about how they're transmitted in particular, and also that there's treatment available."

The pilot sites have not been determined yet, though each school chosen will have to have its own on-site health center, city and school officials said. "Testing will occur at the designated school health centers, and the students will receive test results," said Monique Bond, CPS spokesperson. "School health centers will also provide treatment to those students who have been diagnosed."

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