For free, San Mateo County residents can now be screened at home for sexually transmitted infections or STIs, county officials said Monday.

San Mateo County Health said that it is participating in the TakeMeHome program, in collaboration with the California Department of Public Health, allowing eligible residents to receive free test kits, collect specimens, return them by mail and then get the test results in a secure portal.

County Health said TakeMeHome is part of a tool kit that includes HIV PrEP, which is an antiviral medicine to reduce the chances of getting HIV from sex or injection drug use, and doxy PEP, which provides antibiotics after sex to prevent STIs.

The in-home test kits can be used to screen for HIV, gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis and hepatitis C, county health officials said.

According to San Mateo County Health, the test results from TakeMeHome are shared with the agency, which may contact residents to answer questions and provide information about next steps for treatment.

“Getting tested for STIs is essential to maintaining good health overall. STIs including HIV can be effectively prevented,” Dr. Vivian Levy, County Health’s STI control officer, said in a statement.  “The TakeMeHome program makes testing very easy, offers important information in the process, is available in Spanish and can be completed in the privacy of one’s home.”

Interested residents can order the test kits at takemehome.org, which will provide an online questionnaire to determine their eligibility. The site also offers instructional videos on collecting various types of samples, and resources for further information.

Besides the free program, the County Health’s STI/HIV program offers in-person testing without appointments at its Edison STI Clinic at 222 W. 39th Ave. in San Mateo. Residents can undergo drop-in testing on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 to 7 p.m. 

Drop-in visits for residents who have STI symptoms or for treatment of a confirmed positive STI are available on a first-come, first-served basis on Thursdays from 4 to 6:30 p.m., County Health said.

Fourteen counties in California are currently participating in the program.