Sexual health company Wisp expanded its partnership with TBD Health, the company shared with MedCity News. On Wednesday, it began offering access to TBD Health’s sexually transmitted infection/disease (STI/STD) testing kits on its site.
San Francisco-based Wisp is a virtual health provider for vaginal health, reproductive health and sexual health. Its direct-to-consumer platform offers birth control, as well as treatments for urinary tract infections, genital herpes, bacterial vaginosis and yeast infections. TBD Health, based in New York City, is an online and in-person sexual healthcare platform. It offers at-home STD testing and emergency contraception, as well as telemedicine consults. Its in-person clinics are located in Las Vegas and Denver.
In January, the companies announced that Wisp telehealth patients could be referred to TBD Health’s in-person clinics to receive STD testing, PrEP prescriptions, UTI treatments and other services. Through the expanded partnership, Wisp members can now order TBD Health’s STI/STD testing kits on Wisp’s website for free delivery. They take the test by providing a urine sample and return the kit to one of TBD Health’s partner labs. If the test is positive, then they will consult with a TBD clinician to receive treatment and understand the next steps.
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“We are on a continued mission to offer patients the treatments and care they need when they need it with no hassle, judgment, and no insurance required. … This partnership is helping us to further democratize access to sexual health care and marks the first time we are experimenting with at-home diagnostics on our platform,” said Monica Cepak, CEO of Wisp, in an email.
Wisp is paying TBD Health for its inventory, Cepak added.
The company’s announcement comes at a time when STI cases are on the rise. More than 2.5 million cases of syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia were reported in the U.S. in 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Syphilis cases rose by 80% in the U.S. between 2018 and 2022.
“We recognize that there has never been a greater need for STI/STD treatments and testing options,” Cepak stated. “Through this partnership, we are meeting patient demand while simultaneously working to educate consumers on what symptoms look like and what preventative and post-diagnosis options are.”
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The company also recently added two new medications to its site: M. Hominis Treatment and Ureaplasma Treatment. These bacteria don’t typically lead to issues, but can cause pain, discharge, vaginal odor and challenges with fertility if an imbalance occurs. The medications were created to “effectively combat the imbalance of different bacterias and quickly aid uncomfortable genital symptoms,” Cepak said.
Other companies that offer sexual health support for consumers include Ro and Hims and Hers.