• Lorraine T Dean, Madeline C Montgomery, Julia Raifman, Amy Nunn, Thomas Bertrand, Alexi Almonte, and Philip A Chan.
• Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland. Electronic address: ldean9@jhu.edu.
• Am J Prev Med. 2018 Apr 1; 54 (4): 552-558.

IntroductionSexually transmitted diseases continue to increase in the U.S. There is a growing need for financially viable models to ensure the longevity of safety-net sexually transmitted disease clinics, which provide testing and treatment to high-risk populations. This micro-costing analysis estimated the number of visits required to balance cost and revenue of a sexually transmitted disease clinic in a Medicaid expansion state.MethodsIn 2017, actual and projected cost and revenues were estimated from the Rhode Island sexually transmitted disease clinic in 2015. Projected revenues for a hypothetical clinic offering a standard set of sexually transmitted disease services were based on Medicaid; private ("commercial") insurance; and institutional ("list price") reimbursement rates. The number of visits needed to cover clinic costs at each rate was assessed.ResultsTotal operating cost for 2,153 clinic visits was estimated at $255,769, or $119 per visit. Laboratory testing and salaries each accounted for 44% of operating costs, medications for treatment 7%, supplies 5%, and 28% of visits used insurance. For a standard clinic offering a basic set of sexually transmitted disease services to break even, a projected 73% of visits need to be covered at the Medicaid rate, 38% at private rate, or 11% at institutional rate.ConclusionsSexually transmitted disease clinics may be financially viable when a majority of visits are billed at a Medicaid rate; however, mixed private/public models may be needed if not all visits are billed. In this manner, sexually transmitted disease clinics can be solvent even if not all visits are billed to insurance, thus ensuring access to uninsured or underinsured patients.Copyright © 2018 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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