DHSS: Alaska most sexually diseased state per capita

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Data is sourced from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Backgroundchecks.org.

The

is the weighted average between each states' rates of incidents per 100,000 residents for the two most common STDs – gonorrhea and chlamydia.

The Department of Health and Social Services

Alaska has the country's highest rate of sexually transmitted diseases per capita.

The state is partnering with identity and AIDS non-profit Four A's to combat the problem. As part of STD awareness month, DHSS offered free rapid testing in Downtown Anchorage on Saturday. With completely confidential results, Alaskans were tested for HIV, hepatitis C, gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphilis.

Officials say the state is experiencing a spike in gonorrhea and syphilis cases.

"Alaska’s uptick is part of a national trend of increasing rates for syphilis. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 2016 STD Surveillance Report indicates that there was a 17.6 percent increase in reported primary and secondary syphilis rates nationally from 2015 to 2016; the highest rate reported (8.7 cases per 100,000 population) since 1993," a release sent in March from the DHSS stated.

In the first 4 months of 2018, Alaska has seen around 22 cases of syphilis – the same figure for all of last year.

are available to residents in Alaska, Maryland and Washington D.C.

The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services says it's important for people to contact their sexual partners if they test positive with an sexually transmitted disease.

The sexual partners of a person who has tested positive with an STD may received a phone call, text messages or in-person visits from Alaska Section of Epidemiology disease intervention specialist (DIS) for potential testing and treatment information.