General Information
Our Patient Services Specialists are available five days a week ready to help you get the answers you need to take control of your sexual health. Call 800-773-7066 Monday-Friday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm ET.
You can: Use condoms the right way every single time you have sex, choose less risky sex-related behaviors, restrict your variety of sex-related partners, and never share needles. Contact us for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), taking medicine every day to stop HIV infection.
Ultimately, it depends on your insurance plan. However, HealthyMD works with a number of pharmacies that provide a myriad of services including home delivery.
Please contact our Patient Services team at least 2 weeks before your vacation. You can call us at 800-773-7066, and we’ll do our best to accommodate you!
We take your privacy very seriously. Any information you submit to us through our online portal is transmitted via industry-standard encryption and stored in encrypted form on servers according to federal standards under HIPAA. We follow the federal standards set forth in the HITECH, HIPAA, and the Affordable Care Act.
Yes. We follow the Federal and State laws and regulations that govern privacy standards for protected health information.
You may email legal@HealthyMD.com to express your concern and they will help you.
Test Kit
The process is simple and easy. You can start by selecting the at-home test kit and creating an account providing your information, answer a few questions about your health history, and then place your order. You will receive a confirmation email regarding your order, along with a tracking number to track delivery of your at-home test kit.
From there we will ship your home test kit in discreet packaging, which will include everything you need plus a prepaid return envelope. We provide you with detailed instructions as to how to collect your own samples in the privacy of your home and how to return your collected samples to the Lab.
The at-home test kit was thoughtfully created to look for many of the most common types of STDs. These include HIV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Chlamydia, Syphilis, Gonorrhea, and pregnancy.
HealthyMD’s at-home test kit is free of charge for patients who return their collected samples to the Lab for processing.
Our partner lab will analyze the samples and within a few days HealthyMD’s healthcare provider will review your test results via your scheduled telehealth appointment. If an STI is detected, we can prescribe treatment. If no STIs are detected, then no additional testing is needed for 3 months.
Absolutely. We will provide you with access to your lab results in our secure Patient Portal for your records.
Yes, the process is simple and it is safe. Seal your collected samples from your at-home test kit in the individual plastic bags provided in your kit. Place the plastic bags in the box your kit arrived in and place the box into a prepaid mailer (also in your kit). Seal it and mail it to the Lab. This packaging prevents your samples from being contaminated or compromised during transit. Once properly collected and sealed for return, your samples (urine samples, throat/vaginal/rectal swabs, and blood spot cards) will remain stable for several days, though we encourage you to send your samples back as soon as possible so we can get you your results.
Don’t panic. Your HealthyMD medical provider will contact you to discuss treatment options as well as preventative treatments, such as PrEP. They will also answer any questions you might have. We will be with you on your journey to better health.
HIV
The only way to know is to get tested. You can get tested for FREE at one of our clinics here. You can’t rely on signs and symptoms to tell whether you have HIV. Recognizing your HIV status provides you with powerful information so you can take steps to keep yourself and your companion(s) healthy and balanced. If you test positive, you can take medicine to treat HIV.
HIV tests are reliably accurate, utilizing one correctly boosts the chances of getting a precise result. One element to keep in mind is just how much time has passed between the possible direct exposure as well as the test, referred to as the “home window” period. HIV is only detectable on a test after a certain amount of time has passed since exposure. An HIV test will be most accurate 90 days after a possible exposure to the virus.
Getting tested every 2-4 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months after high-risk sex will provide you with accurate results.
HIV drugs are life-saving tools, but they aren’t meant to be used indefinitely. And if HIV becomes resistant to one of the drugs being used, then it will no longer work. That’s why we advise patients who want to stop taking their HIV meds to think about what it means for their long-term health. Before making any decisions, speak to your healthcare provider.
To achieve maximum protection from HIV, PrEP should be taken as prescribed. Maximum protection occurs after taking PrEP for 21 consecutive days. However, you have to continue taking PrEP every day thereafter to stay protected.
Yes, you can contract HIV through oral sex. HIV is spread through infected bodily fluids, including seminal and vaginal fluids.
Hepatitis C
As of 2016, there are 2.8 million Americans living with HCV, but the true number is unknown due to the fact that many people don’t know they’re infected.
Hepatitis C is a chronic infectious disease that can lead to irreversible liver damage, cirrhosis, and death. You may be feeling scared and overwhelmed. Treatment consists of antiviral medications which can stop the virus from making more copies of itself and help your immune system fight it off.
Hepatitis C is a liver disease that causes inflammation and eventual damage to your liver. The majority of cases are asymptomatic. You may experience some symptoms such as fatigue, nausea, loss of appetite, or yellowing of the eyes and skin.
If you’re positive, it’s possible that you have Hepatitis C. However, it’s also possible that you were previously infected and are no longer infected. A negative result means you are most likely not infected with the virus.
Yes, you can be infected with Hepatitis C more than once. This means individuals who have recovered from a Hepatitis C (HCV) infection do not develop immunity and can therefore be reinfected if exposed again. Reinfection means the virus reappears after it was previously cleared from the body.
If you are diagnosed with both infections, it is possible to treat both simultaneously. Consult a healthcare professional to find a treatment plan that works for you.
STDs
There are two types of sexually transmitted infections: viral infections, which can’t be cured by antibiotics but can be treated with antiviral medications, and bacterial infections, which are generally easier to treat and often curable. Viral sexually transmitted infections include HIV/AIDS and Herpes; bacterial sexually transmitted infections include Syphilis, Gonorrhea, and Chlamydia.
There are so many types of STDs that show up on an STD test, but first, it’s important to understand that there are two ways to test for STDs. There are blood tests and swab tests, with the former being more accurate at detecting some STDs such as Chlamydia and Gonorrhea. However, both tests can accurately identify all types of STDs – like Herpes or HIV – with accuracy.
A few STDs are curable, but most are treatable with either antiviral drugs or antibiotics.
You can get tested for STDs at healthcare facilities like clinics, hospitals, or specialized sexual health centers. At HealthyMD, we provide FREE and fast testing for sexually transmitted infections/diseases. It is confidential and the results are known same day. Click here to visit one of our locations across the state of Florida or Georgia. All walk-ins are welcome.
Many STDs are treatable with medication. At HealthyMD, our healthcare providers will complete your free test and evaluation as well as discuss treatment options and follow-up appointments to ensure the infection is cleared. Here are several more actionable steps you should take to manage your health and prevent transmission to others:
- Complete any prescribed medication regimen, even if symptoms disappear, to ensure the infection is fully treated.
- Notify anyone you’ve had sexual contact with so they can also get tested and receive treatment if necessary. This helps to prevent the spread of the disease.
- Practice safe sex by using condoms or abstain from sexual activity while you are being treated to prevent passing the infection to others.
- Attend all follow-up appointments to ensure the infection is cleared or is being managed effectively if it’s a chronic condition.
- Consider mental health care to help you manage your emotional and mental health if diagnosed with an STD. HealthyMD provides free mental health services to all our patients.
PrEP
If you’re HIV negative and had anal or vaginal sex in the past 6 months with a partner who is HIV positive (and has an unknown or detectable viral load), you might want to consider taking PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend PrEP to these people, as well as others who are at high risk of contracting HIV. Make an appointment at one of our locations now to know your status. If you qualify for PrEP, a HealthyMD healthcare provider will prescribe it for you.
Once it is determined that PrEP is appropriate for you and you have tested negative for HIV at one of our locations, we will connect you with a healthcare provider who will prescribe you PrEP. If the result is positive, we will help you find the right HIV medication for you.
Some people experience side effects from PrEP such as diarrhea, nausea, headache, fatigue, or stomach pain. These effects usually go away over time, but feel free to contact a HealthyMD medical provider if you’re experiencing any discomfort.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that in the United States, 1 out of 8 people between the ages of 13 and 49 have HIV. If you’re sexually active with multiple partners or without protection, you may want to consider getting tested frequently or taking precautions like practicing abstinence, using condoms, and never sharing needles to prevent the spread of HIV. You may also be able to take advantage of HIV prevention medicines such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (nPEP).