The number of babies being born with syphilis in the U.S. kept increasing last year, even as the number of cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the country dropped, according to new government data.

The overall number of reported STI cases fell 9% in 2024 from 2023, the third year in a row that case numbers have declined, provisional data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this week shows. But cases of syphilis in newborns, also known as congenital syphilis, increased for the twelfth straight year. Nearly 4,000 cases were reported in 2024—up almost 700% since 2015, when just under 500 were reported.

The rise in congenital syphilis cases wasn’t as steep in 2024 as it has been in previous years—just under 2% from 2023. Dr. Bradley Stoner, the

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