Press release content from Business Wire. The AP news staff was not involved in its creation. STI Awareness Month: Rachel Zar, Relationship and Sex Therapist on Staying Safe Between the Sheets April 16, 2021 GMT CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 16, 2021-- For those who have been social distancing for over a year, the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel comes with an exciting cherry on top: the return to having sex! But even when COVID-19 is no longer a concern, the need to protect our sexual health and safety should still be top of mind. Health Affairs reported when the COVID-19 pandemic began, the United States was already experiencing record high rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and since the pandemic, lack of testing has made it difficult to accurately measure the changes in STIs like chlamydia and gonorrhea. With health clinics reducing office hours and, in some cases, temporarily closing, care for STIs has fallen below par. About one in five people in the United States has an STI, according to CDC data from 2018, so it’s important that we arm people with the tools they need to be a responsible sexually active adult.