Online sexual health care with a doctor you choose

HealthTap offers a variety of services through telehealth appointments with their online primary care doctors regarding sexual health.

These sexual health services include:

• Contraception management and prescriptions (including birth control pills and other non-procedural options)
• Emergency contraception advice and prescriptions
• Penis and testicle issues (some types of erectile dysfunction, libido deficiency, performance anxiety and premature ejaculation)
• STI prevention and treatment online for some causes
• Vaginal issues (libido deficiency, problems with orgasm, bladder infections, vulvovaginal itching, vaginal yeast infections)

For instances where an anus or genital exam is needed, patients may need to seek in-person care. HealthTap cannot manage HIV medications and health concerns like sexual assault or transgender hormonal care, which require in-person care and follow-up at a sexual health clinic or hospital.

HealthTap's doctors can treat some sexually transmitted infections (STIs) — previously known as sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) — with a simple telehealth appointment. Chlamydia, herpes (HSV), and trichomoniasis are all among the STIs that may be managed by an online doctor.

However, prior to receiving treatment, the STI should be diagnosed. Patients can speak to their online sexual health doctor for testing recommendations, which may vary depending on the symptoms they are exhibiting and any potential disease exposure they may have had. Positive lab test results for STIs and some other communicable diseases are reportable to local public health nurses as they may help check on treatment issues of patients and their partners.

Erectile dysfunction impacts millions of men across the United States, but not many feel comfortable discussing these types of health conditions with their in-person healthcare clinicians. HealthTap offers patients struggling with erectile dysfunction a more discreet way to manage and treat their symptoms without going into an office.

If an online primary care doctor focused on men's sexual health recommends medication to treat erectile dysfunction, it can be prescribed to almost any pharmacy that the patient chooses. Follow-up care is also available by text messaging, with patients usually receiving responses within one business day.

HealthTap's doctors caring for women's sexual health can provide patients with birth control counseling — an appointment where the provider discusses the available options. Subsequent visits for follow-up care ensure those options are still working well for the patient.

As patients age, their options for birth control may change. Birth control counseling also helps ensure that any contraceptive medication a patient has been prescribed remains safe for them through all stages of their reproductive life. Online sexual health doctors can also suggest safer options if any contraindications exist or if side effects occur or worsen. An in-person visit is needed for contraceptive injections, implants, IUD placement or other procedures.