Fall 2020 COVID-19 Testing Update
If you have not had a recent appointment, you may not be aware that we can now readily provide COVID-19 testing. Nurse Beth is managing our COVID testing program and will conduct most testing appointments.
It can be confusing to understand the various forms of testing available. Here is a brief summary of the testing options we currently offer.
SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 TESTING
NASAL PCR/NAAT
Detects viral RNA, indicating current infection. Gold standard, most sensitive. 2-14 days for results via major labs.
$50 collection fee for members / $125 non-member drive-up collection 1st person, $99 per additional.
Lab CAN bill insurance. Self Pay $100 for lab processing.
NASAL ANTIGEN
Detects viral antigens, indicating current infection. Same day/next day results from local facility.
$50 collection fee for members / $125 non-member drive-up collection 1st person, $99 per additional
Lab CANNOT bill insurance. $150 each antigen test
FINGERSTICK ANTIBODIES
Blood test for IgM, IgG antibodies, evidence of past infection. Results in 10 minutes.
$40 kit fee for members / $75 non-member office collection 1st person plus $55 kit fee, $60 per additional patient at the same time, plus $55 kit fee ($115 total)
You may be aware of the BinaxNow fast and cheap antigen test cards produced by Abbott. As soon as they were announced we tried to obtain them. Unfortunately, the manufacturer sent this response:
“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced on August 28th that they awarded a contract to Abbott for delivery of 150 million BinaxNOW COVID-19 tests. Our ambition is to distribute broadly to employers, university and retail pharmacy settings. However, at this time, we are unable to support additional requests for product.”
So we will have to wait for a competing product to be made available. In the meantime, Beth is actively pursuing other diagnostic testing we could do in-house without having to send samples to an outside facility. Our goal is to reduce the time for getting results, and if possible bring the cost of testing down so that it can become more routine like a flu test. I am confident we can improve the testing time very soon, but reducing costs depends on manufacturers. We will keep you posted.