The sharp spike in some sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) has crippled the healthcare system in the United States, prompting alarmed officials to look for new prevention and treatment methods.

In a speech at a medical conference on Monday, Leandro Mena of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was at pains to acknowledge the health system’s incompetency and said it is “imperative” to “rebuild, innovate, and expand (STD) prevention” in the country.

Last year, a 26 percent rise in new syphilis infections brought the rate of syphilis cases to its highest since 1991. HIV cases have also surged by 16 percent since the last year, according to reports.

Executive Director of the National Coalition of STD Directors David Harvey has depicted the situation as “out of control”, as the problem with sexually transmitted diseases is worsening across the country.

The surging number of cases has prompted the officials to work on new approaches to the problem, such as home-test kits for some STDs, in order to take steps to prevent spreading it to others upon being infected.

Mike Saag, an infectious disease expert from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, characterized the solution in using condoms and said: “It’s pretty simple. More sexually transmitted infections occur when people are having more unprotected sex.”

Syphilis is a bacterial disease that surfaces as genital sores but can cause heart problems, blindness, paralysis, or even death if left untreated.

By way of background, new syphilis infections plummeted in the US starting in the 1940s when antibiotics became widely available. They fell to their lowest ever by 1998, when fewer than 7,000 new cases were reported nationwide.

However, in late 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention faced financial problems and was forced to eliminate the campaign, which led to a surge in the number of cases that surpassed 17,000.

According to the figures, the rate for women is lower than it is for men. However, the dangerous part is that infected moms can pass the disease on to their babies, potentially leading to the death of the child.

The arrival of the monkeypox added a large additional burden. The CDC recently sent a letter to state and local health departments saying that their HIV and STD resources could be used to fight the monkeypox outbreak, but experts say the government needs to provide more funding for STD work, not divert it.

Harvey’s group and some other public health organizations are pushing a proposal for more federal funding, including at least $500 million for STD clinics.