COVID-19 testing and coronavirus antibody testing are widely available for most patients. As mentioned in our last blog post, there are two main types of COVID-19 testing patients can recieve: the antibody test which measures a patient’s immunity and recovery from COVID-19 and the swab test detects an active coronavirus infection. While testing access has increased across the country it is important to effectively evaluate an ideal COVID-19 testing facility that meets your needs.
Clinics and medical campuses may only have limited patient volume, limited testing access, and other patient barriers to testing. The best clinics available for patients include accessible and affordable COVID-19 testing for all patients. A provider organization may only focus on certain epidemiological activity and populations, which may unintentionally exclude you from testing access.
Here’s what you need to know in order to find a nearby COVID-19 testing facility that offers the highest-quality for patients.
See if testing facilities have multiple testing types
A patient may need to get either COVID-19 swab testing or antibody testing, and in rare cases require both types of testing. Access to antibody testing and swab testing helps patients reduce their risk of infection and spreading the virus. Testing also helps patients return to normal activities and travel, which means that having a local medical provider that offers both types is useful.
When conducting a search for COVID-19 testing make sure that the provider can perform both COVID-19 swab tests to detect an active infection and antibody tests to determine a patient’s immune response to a previous infection. Frequent testing helps communities to track cases and recovery rates from the virus.
Double check insurance coverage, out-of-pocket costs for COVID-19 testing
Right now, most insurance companies and public health organizations offer COVID-19 testing for free or through coverage by an insurance provider. However, as COVID-19 slows down insurance companies and provider organizations may not allow patients to get free testing in the near future. Because of this, it helps to find a local urgent care center that provides COVID-19 testing at low rates and accepts major insurance providers for services.
For example, AFC Urgent Care Warrington provides COVID-19 testing for low rates and accepts major insurance options in the state of PA. Urgent care centers are able to provide low-cost services that are almost always covered by an insurance company. Additionally, out-of-pocket testing may spike in costs at traditional medical facilities while urgent care maintains low prices.
Read reviews on medical care, access, and quality
Just like any other provider, you want to see if other patients have recommended or discouraged certain provider organizations. Online reviews are a great way to quickly learn this information, but some need to be taken with a grain of salt. Carefully read through several reviews to find consistent praise or negative comments about care.
A high-quality urgent care provider, like AFC Warrington, ensures that patients have a COVID-free experience while getting tested by maintaining CDC protocols for infection control!
