Chlamydia and gonorrhea screening outreach

Chlamydia and gonorrhea screening outreach invites people who are due for a test to book one. The federal recommendation behind it is short and clear for one group, sexually active women 24 and younger, and narrower for everyone else. That makes it a good fit for recall and reminder programs in OB-GYN, family medicine, student health, urgent care and sexual health clinics. It is also a service where a careless message does real harm. A reminder that names the infection can reach a parent, a partner or an employer, an insurance statement can list the test, and a page that promises quick partner medicine can run past what a state allows. This guide covers who the recommendation names, what Medicare and private plans pay for, how to write retest reminders, what to say about partner treatment, and how to protect teens and adults who want the visit kept private.

Related topics have their own guides and are not repeated here. Clinic-wide marketing is covered in our guide to sexual health clinic marketing, other tests in our guides to syphilis testing outreach and HIV testing outreach, prevention medicine in our guide to PrEP clinic marketing, and the text rules in detail in our guide to text message appointment reminders.

This is general information, not legal or medical advice. Sources cited were checked on October 30, 2026: the USPSTF final recommendation Chlamydia and Gonorrhea: Screening (September 14, 2021) and its Recommendations in Progress page, the Medicare.gov page Sexually transmitted infection (STI) screenings and counseling, the CDC Sexually Transmitted Infections Treatment Guidelines, 2021 sections on chlamydial infections (last reviewed July 22, 2021), gonococcal infections among adults and adolescents (last reviewed September 21, 2022) and special populations, adolescents, the CDC pages About Chlamydia (January 31, 2025), Expedited Partner Therapy (July 16, 2024) and Legal Status of Expedited Partner Therapy (map last updated July 1, 2026), all read through archived copies, 42 U.S.C. 300gg-13 and 1320a-7a, 45 CFR 164.502 and 164.522, 47 CFR 64.1200, 15 U.S.C. 45 and 16 CFR 251.1. Minors’ consent, parent notification, insurance statement rules and partner treatment laws differ by state. Have a health care attorney review the campaign and check your state’s rules before you launch.

Who the federal recommendation names

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends screening for chlamydia and for gonorrhea in all sexually active women 24 years or younger and in women 25 years or older who are at increased risk for infection, with a grade of B for each. The recommendation names pregnant persons as part of that group. For sexually active men, the Task Force found the evidence insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening, an I statement, and said more research is needed. The statement is dated September 14, 2021, and says it is consistent with the 2014 recommendation.

Three details matter for marketing. First, the recommendation applies to people without signs or symptoms of either infection; a person with symptoms needs a visit, not a screening slot. Second, the risk factors it lists for women 25 and older are personal: a previous or current sexually transmitted infection, a new partner or more than one, a partner who has other partners at the same time, a partner with an infection, inconsistent condom use outside a mutually monogamous relationship, a history of exchanging sex for money or drugs, and a history of incarceration. Third, it says both infections can be tested for at the same time with the same specimen, which is why practices offer the two together.

We checked whether the recommendation is being redone. On October 30, 2026, the USPSTF Recommendations in Progress page did not list chlamydia or gonorrhea screening. It did list behavioral counseling for sexually transmitted infections, a related topic, so a page that describes counseling should be checked again when that update is final. The Task Force’s membership has also changed since 2025; our syphilis testing guide explains what that means for pages that quote it.

Quote the recommendation as written, with its date and grade, and link to it.
Do not turn the risk factor list into ad copy or a public quiz. Invite people by age and by their clinician’s advice, not by their sexual history.
Do not tell men that screening is recommended for them by the Task Force. The CDC’s own guidance for some groups of men differs; if your page relies on it, name the CDC as the source.
Send anyone with symptoms, or whose partner has told them about an infection, to a visit.

What the CDC adds: yearly tests and retesting

The CDC’s 2021 treatment guidelines say annual screening of all sexually active women under 25 is recommended, as is screening of older women at increased risk. Its public page About Chlamydia tells sexually active women under 25, and women 25 and older with risk factors, to get tested every year, and tells sexually active gay and bisexual men to get tested every year as well. That yearly rhythm is what makes recall outreach work: a practice can invite a patient back about a year after their last test without stating why they were tested.

The guidelines also call for retesting. People treated for chlamydia should be retested about three months after treatment, whether or not they believe their partners were treated, and scheduling that follow-up visit at the time of treatment is encouraged. If a retest at three months is not possible, the guidelines say to retest whenever the person next seeks care within 12 months. The gonorrhea section says the same for people treated for gonorrhea. Pregnancy has its own retest schedule in the guidelines, set by the clinician.

The best retest reminder is the appointment booked before the patient leaves. A text or call afterward should confirm that visit, not explain it.

What Medicare and private plans pay for

The Medicare.gov page on sexually transmitted infection screenings says Part B covers screenings for chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and hepatitis B for people who are pregnant or at increased risk for an infection. It covers one screening every 12 months, or at certain times during pregnancy, and a health care provider must order the screening. The person pays nothing if their primary care doctor or provider accepts assignment. Part B also covers up to two face-to-face, high-intensity behavioral counseling sessions a year, each 20 to 30 minutes, for sexually active adults at increased risk, and only in a primary care setting such as a doctor’s office.

For private coverage, 42 U.S.C. 300gg-13(a)(1) requires plans subject to the rule to cover, with no cost sharing, items and services with an A or B rating in the current Task Force recommendations. Because the screening grade is B for women and an I statement for men, the federal no-cost rule does not reach screening for men through that route. Some plans are not subject to the rule, and a visit that treats a new problem can carry its own cost.

Keep the recommendation and the coverage apart. “Screening is recommended for sexually active women 24 and younger” and “your plan may cover it” are different sentences with different sources.
Do not write “free STI testing” unless it is free for every person who reads it. If a page says free, 16 CFR 251.1 applies: any conditions must be stated clearly at the outset.
Offer to check coverage before the visit, and offer a self-pay option for people who do not want the test billed to a plan.

Partner treatment: what you can and cannot advertise

The CDC describes expedited partner therapy as the clinical practice of treating the sex partners of patients diagnosed with chlamydia or gonorrhea by giving the patient medicine, or an order for it, to take to the partner, without the provider first examining the partner. CDC has concluded it is a useful option for partner management, particularly for male partners of women with either infection, and that it does not replace other strategies such as provider-assisted referral. The 2021 guidelines say it should be considered as permitted by law.

The law is the point. The CDC’s Legal Status of Expedited Partner Therapy map, which it says is updated annually and was last updated July 1, 2026, lists it as permissible in 49 states, the District of Columbia and the Northern Mariana Islands. The CDC page says its information is not legal advice. Check your own state’s page on that map, and the rules of your licensing board and pharmacy board, before your clinicians use it.

Partner treatment is a clinical decision made for a patient who has been diagnosed. It is not a product to put in an ad, a landing page headline or a coupon.
Do not promise treatment for a partner without a visit, and do not name any medicine. A page can say “If you are diagnosed, your clinician will talk with you about how your partners can be treated.”
Do not use a patient’s diagnosis to contact a partner for marketing, and do not ask patients for partners’ phone numbers for any purpose other than the care the clinician arranges.

Teens and confidential care

The screening recommendation starts with sexually active teens, so a chlamydia program reaches minors whether or not it is aimed at them. The CDC’s 2021 guidelines, in the section on adolescents, say all 50 states and the District of Columbia explicitly allow minors to consent for their own STI services, and that no state requires parental consent for STI care, though the age at which a minor can consent to some related services differs by state. They also say that in 2019, 18 states allowed, but did not require, physicians to tell parents that a minor received STI services. Those figures are from 2021 and earlier; check your state’s current law.

The same section points to the bigger risk: insurance paperwork. It says that after a claim is submitted, states can require plans to send the policyholder a statement of the service, and that an explanation of benefits or a bill received by a parent might list the STI tests performed or the treatment given. It notes that certain states have set up ways to protect adolescents’ confidentiality and limit those statements.

Under 45 CFR 164.502(g), a parent is generally a minor’s personal representative, with exceptions where the minor may lawfully consent to the care or where state law permits or prohibits disclosure to a parent. Our pediatric practice guide covers this in more detail.

Keep STI screening out of family reminders. A well visit reminder names the visit only.
Ask counsel how your state handles a minor’s consent, parent notice and insurance statements, and set your reminder tool, portal and billing to match.
Give the teen a contact method of their own for results and follow-up, chosen at the visit.
Once a patient reaches the age of majority under state law, ask them how they want to be reached.

Adults who want the visit kept private

Privacy matters to adults too, and HIPAA gives them two tools a practice should say out loud. Under 45 CFR 164.522(b), a provider must accommodate reasonable requests to receive communications by alternative means or at alternative locations, such as a different phone number or no voicemail. Under 45 CFR 164.522(a)(1)(vi), a provider must agree to a request not to disclose information to a health plan for payment or health care operations, when it is not otherwise required by law and the item or service was paid for in full by the patient or someone other than the plan. A page can say plainly that patients may ask to be contacted only at a number they choose, and may pay for a visit themselves to keep it off their plan’s records.

Reminder texts, calls and letters

The FCC rule at 47 CFR 64.1200(a)(9)(iv) exempts certain healthcare calls and texts to a wireless number from the prior consent requirement, including appointment and exam confirmations and reminders and lab results. The conditions include sending only to the wireless number the patient provided, stating the provider’s name and contact information, no telemarketing, solicitation or advertising, no more than one message per day and three per week, an opt-out in each message, and honoring opt-outs immediately. The rule also says the messages must comply with HIPAA privacy rules and be concise, generally 160 characters or less for a text. Our text reminder guide covers the setup.

For this service, write each message as if a partner, parent or coworker might read it over the patient’s shoulder. No infection name, no test name, no clinic nickname that gives it away, and no result in a text.

Sample yearly recall text: “[Practice name]: it may be time for your yearly checkup. Book at [phone] or [link], [days and hours]. Reply STOP to opt out.” Sample retest confirmation: “[Practice name]: reminder of your visit on [date] at [time]. Call [phone] to change it. Reply STOP to opt out.” Neither names the test, the reason or the result.

Build the recall list from your own records, not from a bought list. Our guide to buying patient leads explains why.
Use the contact method and language the patient chose, and note any request for no voicemail or no mail.
Results go through the portal or a call to the number the patient chose, after you confirm who you are speaking with.

Ads, pages and tracking

For Google Ads, target place and search terms such as STI testing near me, not patient lists, and do not address the reader as someone who has or might have an infection; Google’s personalized advertising policy lists health, sexual content and sexual orientation among its restricted categories. Our sexual health clinic guide covers the ad and image rules.

Booking pages for this service should not send page titles, form answers or appointment types to ad or analytics platforms. HHS has explained how online tracking technologies can disclose health information; our guide to tracking pixels on practice websites covers it. Under 15 U.S.C. 45, claims must be true and not misleading, so do not promise same-day results, or a specific turnaround. Offering something of value to a Medicare or Medicaid beneficiary to choose your practice can bring in 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7a(a)(5), so have counsel review any gift or giveaway.

The service page itself should say who the screening is recommended for, with the source and date, how the visit works, how to keep it private, how to check coverage, and what to do with symptoms. Make the page and the booking form usable with a keyboard and a screen reader.

Illustration: two screening pages

Illustration: a page reads “Free STD testing! Think you have chlamydia? Get tested today and we will send meds home for your partner, no visit needed. Results by text in an hour.” It says free without terms, invites people with symptoms to a screening, advertises partner treatment as a product, names the infection in a way that shapes ad targeting, and promises a result time and a text result.

Illustration: a second page for the same practice reads “The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends chlamydia and gonorrhea screening for sexually active women 24 and younger, and for women 25 and older at increased risk (September 14, 2021). Ask your clinician whether it is right for you. If you have symptoms, book a visit instead. You can ask us to contact you only at a number you choose, and you can pay for the visit yourself. Call [phone] to book, [days and hours].” It quotes the recommendation as written and dated, separates screening from symptoms, and explains privacy without making a promise.

Checklist before a screening campaign goes live

The page quotes the USPSTF recommendation as written, with its date and grade, and does not say the Task Force recommends screening men.
Coverage claims match Medicare.gov and your plans, no page promises a no-cost visit to every reader, and any free offer states its terms at the outset.
People with symptoms, or whose partner has an infection, are sent to a visit, not a screening slot.
Retest visits are booked at treatment, and reminders confirm the visit without naming it.
Texts name the practice only, stay within one per day and three per week, carry a STOP opt-out and never include a result.
Partner treatment appears only as something a clinician discusses after a diagnosis, with no medicine named, and its legal status in your state has been checked.
Teen consent, parent notice and insurance statement rules for your state have been reviewed by counsel and set in the portal, reminders and billing.
Patients are told they can choose how they are contacted and can pay out of pocket to keep the visit off their plan.
Ads target place and search terms, not patient lists or health, sexual content or sexual orientation categories, and no tracking tool on the booking page sends the appointment type to an ad platform.

How we help

We build websites, local search, Google Ads, patient lead generation and AI front desk tools for independent practices and health businesses, including OB-GYN, family medicine and sexual health clinics. For screening outreach, that means a site that quotes the recommendation and the coverage rules as written and dated, booking pages that keep the appointment type away from ad platforms, and reminders that stay within the federal text rules and say nothing a partner or parent should not see. Our tools are built with HIPAA in mind. We confirm in writing what a BAA covers before any patient information flows through a tool, and if it is not covered, we do not route patient information through it.

Who should be screened for chlamydia and gonorrhea?

The USPSTF (September 14, 2021) recommends screening all sexually active women 24 years or younger and women 25 or older at increased risk, including pregnant persons. It found the evidence insufficient to recommend for or against screening men.

Does Medicare cover chlamydia and gonorrhea screening?

Medicare.gov says Part B covers one screening every 12 months, or at certain times during pregnancy, for people who are pregnant or at increased risk, when a provider orders it. The person pays nothing if the provider accepts assignment.

When should a patient be retested after treatment?

The CDC’s 2021 guidelines say people treated for chlamydia or gonorrhea should be retested about three months after treatment, and encourage booking that visit at the time of treatment.

Can a practice advertise expedited partner therapy?

It is a clinical decision for a diagnosed patient, not a product. The CDC lists it as permissible in 49 states, the District of Columbia and the Northern Mariana Islands (map updated July 1, 2026). Check your state and do not name a medicine or promise treatment without a visit.

Will a parent see a teen’s STI test on an insurance statement?

It can happen. The CDC’s 2021 guidelines say an explanation of benefits or bill received by a parent might list the tests, and certain states limit those statements. Ask counsel how your state handles it.

What can a screening reminder text say?

Under 47 CFR 64.1200(a)(9)(iv), a reminder names the practice and its contact information, carries no advertising, includes a STOP opt-out and stays within one message per day and three per week. Leave out the test, the reason and any result.

Chlamydia and gonorrhea screening outreach: who to invite, Medicare, retesting, partner treatment and private reminders