World Sexual Health Day, observed on September 4, highlights an important annual theme. This year, the theme is Sexual Justice: What Can We Do? It covers sexual health and reproductive rights for all, freedom from stigma and shame, and access to accurate, uncensored information about sexuality and health.
In 2023, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 2,459,140 cases of syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia, at a 1.8% decrease from 2022 but a 32.5% increase since 2014. According to the CDC, 48.2% of these cases involved young adults and teens ages 15–24 years. Additionally, gay, bisexual, and men who have sex with men are disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted infections (STIs) compared to other groups. STIs also impact Black and Indigenous communities more than other racial groups. In 2023, 32.4% of all cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and primary and secondary syphilis were in the non-Hispanic Black or African American population.
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Thus, the emphasis on equality in sexual and reproductive care regardless of sexual orientation and race is vital for improving sexual health in the US. According to GlobalData’s Sexual Health Tests Stock Keeping Unit (SKU) Tracker, which analyses purchasing records from 1,350 US hospitals and other facilities like distribution centers and clinics, the most popular targets tested in the US are chlamydia and gonorrhea (CT/NG) as a dual test, with Roche’s Cobas test leading, accounting for 44.6% of total volume sales in 2025, and Hologic’s Aptima Panther tests making up 39.9%.
Additionally, when comparing the volume of sales in all facility types from H1 2024 to H1 2025 for CT/NG dual tests, it decreased by 1.7%, and when looking at total value, it also declined by 1.8%. Specifically, according to GlobalData’s Sexual Health Tests SKU Tracker, the volume of sales showed an 8.5% decrease in sales for the Hologic Panther Aptima CT/NG test and a 4.6% increase in sales for the Roche Cobas CT/NG test. However, when looking at hospitals alone, the volume of tests increased by 4.7% and the value increased by 3.7% for CT/NG tests. Notably, when comparing another popular sexual health test target, bacterial vaginosis, in H1 2024 and H1 2025 in all facilities, there was a decrease in volume sold of 27.8%, and there was a decrease in volume sold of only 1.6% in hospitals alone.
Ongoing cuts to programmes funding STI testing such as Planned Parenthood and organisations that serve marginalised communities, along with the decline in safe sex education, may have contributed to the overall decrease in testing. The reduction in testing could be even more pronounced in clinics that have decreased funding. According to GlobalData’s SKU tracker, when looking at clinics alone, there was an 85.8% decrease in volume when comparing H1 2024 and H1 2025. When underserved communities that desperately need more funding to combat illnesses outside of sexual health experience more funding cuts, the vulnerable population will remain vulnerable.
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By GlobalData
