Three major sexually transmitted infections (STIs)—chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis—decreased by a combined 8.5% last year, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Despite the decline, more than 2.2 million cases were reported in 2024. The report comes at a time when STI, sexual health and women’s health services are facing steep funding cuts, and advocates fear recent progress could be lost.

 

Chlamydia cases fell by 8.0% last year, to just over 1.5 million cases, the second consecutive annual decline. Gonorrhea cases fell by 9.6%, the third straight drop. Primary and secondary syphilis—the most infectious stages—declined by 21.7%, while late-stage or unknown-duration syphilis decreased by just 1.5%.

 

STIs have been on the upswing in recent decades, with a 13% overall increase from 2015 to 2024. The latest data suggest that the epidemic may be turning a corner. The adoption of doxyPEP—taking a dose of the antibiotic doxy-cycline after sex to prevent bacterial STIs—may be playing a role.

 

But the report also contains some concerning news. Congenital syphilis among newborns, acquired during pregnancy or delivery, rose by 1.6%, reaching 3,941 cases. This was the 12th annual increase in a row, though it was much lower than the double-digit jumps seen in some prior years as cases skyrocketed by nearly 700% over the past decade.

 

The latest data offer hope, “but we have far more work to do,” says Elizabeth Finley, of the National Coalition of STD Directors. “We call on the Trump administration to make sure states and cities can win this fight by giving them the resources, information, effective workforce and modernized systems they need to protect every American, and particularly our most vulnerable infants.”