Doctors and nurses who diagnose chlamydia in a patient may legally prescribe or provide antibiotic drugs to the patient's sex partners without first examining them.

This medical practice is known as Expedited Partner Therapy (EPT) and the purpose is to decrease the spread of this sexually transmitted infection.

The law does not require doctors to provide EPT and complaints against doctors who refuse to do so, are not accepted.

If a sex partner brings you medicine to treat chlamydia, you should take it immediately, according to the Department of Health. After you take the medicine, you should not have any kind of sex for at least seven days. You should also get tested for sexually transmitted infections.

You may have an allergic response to the medicine and throw up before it has time to work. If you take the medicine and throw up within one hour of taking it, let the doctor know and ask for a different antibiotic as soon as possible. Also, ask your doctor to report your allergic reaction to the New York City Department of Health.

According to the Department of Health, the medically accepted prescription for the treatment of chlamydia is Azithromycin, also called Zithromax or Zmax.

Get more information on Expedited Partner Therapy.

Learn more about chlamydia.