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Expedited Partner Therapy						Print
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										Expedited Partner Therapy (EPT) is the clinical practice of treating the sex partners of patients diagnosed with chlamydia or gonorrhea by providing prescriptions or medications to the patient to take to his/her partner *without the health care provider first examining the partner*.
Effective clinical management of patients with treatable sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) requires treatment of the patients’ current sex partners to prevent reinfection and curtail further transmission. The standard approach to partner treatment has included clinical evaluation in a health care setting, with partner notification accomplished by the index patient, by the provider or an agent of the provider, or a combination of these methods. Provider-assisted referral is considered the optimal strategy for partner treatment, but is not available to most patients with gonorrhea or chlamydial infection because of resource limitations. The usual alternative is to advise patients to refer their partners for treatment.Expedited Partner Therapy. Illustration of a woman telling a clinician about her partner and the clinician prescribing treatment for both of them.EPT Infographic: A Patient ResourceCDC has concluded that **EPT is a useful option to facilitate partner management, particularly for treatment of male partners of women with chlamydial infection or gonorrhea**. Although ongoing evaluation will be needed to define when and how EPT can be best utilized, the evidence indicates that EPT should be available to clinicians as an option for partner treatment. EPT represents an additional strategy for partner management that does not replace other strategies such as provider-assisted referral, when available.Review and GuidanceGuidance on the Use of Expedited Partner Therapy in the Treatment of Gonorrhea (updated February 26, 2021)
Expedited Partner Therapy in the Management of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (February 2, 2006)Legal StatusLegal Status of EPT by Jurisdiction (as of November 2023)
Legal/Policy Toolkit for Adoption and Implementation of Expedited Partner Therapy (January 31, 2011)
The Legal Aspects of Expedited Partner Therapy Practice: Do State Laws and Policies Really Matter? – Article from *Sexually Transmitted Diseases* (July 23, 2013)
Insurance Billing for Sensitive Health Services: Statutory and Regulatory Analysis using LawAtlas
Success StoryExpedited Partner Therapy: Helping to Reduce Sexually Transmitted InfectionsIllinois and Chicago working to expand the use of EPT to reach more partners with the medication they need.STI Prevention Success StoriesPosition Papers and OpinionsAmerican Osteopathic Association (AOA) Policy Compendium – AOA’s endorsement of EPT can be found on page 50. (2018)
Expedited Partner Therapy: Helping to Reduce Sexually Transmitted Infections
Expedited Partner Therapy in the Management of Gonorrhea and Chlamydial Infection (June 2015)
American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) Position Statement (2012)
A Position Paper of the Society for Adolescent Medicine. (January 28, 2010)
American Bar Association resolution supporting removal of legal barriers to the provision of EPT. (August 15, 2008)
							
					
							Last Reviewed:  November 3, 2023						Source: 	Division of STD Prevention, National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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