Having lab work done

Yvonne Smith

Yvonne Smith

Greeter
Staff member
It is really expensive to have even the basic labs done, and you only have that maybe 2-3 times a year, and when your doctor orders lab work for you. I just read about a company called “Own Your Labs”, and you can order your lab test done whenever you want them done. Some are as cheap as $10, and the A1c test is even less than that .
It looks like you can choose which test you want done, so even if it is something your doctor does not usually do, you can order it yourself.

Order Blood Tests Online - Own Your Labs

Affordable Direct-To-Consumer Blood Testing
ownyourlabs.com ownyourlabs.com
 
I looked at the FAQ’s, and it looks like how it works is, you order whatever test you want done from the website, pay them, and then you go to the nearest Labcorp and have the actual bloodwork done there. So, if you live close to a Labcorp place, this should work well for any test you want that the doctor didn’t ask for, or that insurance does not cover.
If you are not close to a Labcorp, then this might not be a viable alternative.

Bobby has asked for hormone tests that he was interested in having done, and our doctor said insurance would not cover it, or the doctor just said it was not important and didn’t order it.
Many times lab work does not include an A1c test, which is how they determine if you have diabetes or not. When I asked about that, the doctor just told me that since I am not diabetic, i don’t need that test. That makes no sense to me, if they don’t test to see, how do they know whether i am diabetic or not ?
 
You can buy an A1C test at Walmart or most pharmacies to do at home. A good indicator of whether a person is diabetic is a daily glucose monitoring test; those are also available to purchase at pharmacies though the meter and strips can be pricey.

If a doctor orders a fasting glucose test and it seems high, they will follow up with the A1C.
 
Neither I nor SO had our PCP refuse to request lab work she considered even remotely necessary. When she found out about our hobbies she added lead and charged it off. When my hair fell out in clumps and dermatology declared it genetic she did not accept that. She found the root cause and my hair is past waist.
Talk to your doctors. Give them something to work with.
 
Marie Miller said:
Why would you get lab work done that is not requested by a medical provider.
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I had a micronutrient test done a few years ago to test for vitamin deficiencies and a bunch of other stuff. The thing about doing your own lab work is finding a place to draw your blood...and there's a fee for that. LabCorp no longer does "self-directed" tests...they gotta be ordered by an MD. The only place in my region that does it now is called Quest...and they're about 40 miles away from me. Te place I ordered my micronutrient test through had a traveling phlebotomist come to their store. She primarily did blood draws in people's homes for life insurance physicals.

Other than that, I can see someone wanting to monitor their A1C on their own, or as you said, getting a lead test (I also got one of those last year because of my hobby, but my MD ordered it.) There could be a few reasons folks would want to check on stuff (Vit D levels, etc) without waiting to get a doctor appointment or to pay their doctor solely to get a test.
 
As far as I know, ordering your own lab tests is on a state-by-state basis. Some states allow it and some do not. LabCorp seems to be the most friendly to this in our region. Completely different from what @John Brunner found so try both Quest and Lab Corp. Ordering your own tests only helps if you know what to do with the results, and if you can do something to remedy any issues. Reference ranges can give you some guidance but don't tell the whole story. At-home testing can be a good way to monitor things, but are best used to follow already-diagnoses problems as they are not held to the same standards as the laboratories are, especially in the "outer ranges".

I have mentioned before that I have found that most post-menopausal women are happiest with a TSH of around 1.0 mIU/L even though higher and lower values are considered "normal", so guidance is sometimes needed with results.
 
Don Alaska said:
As far as I know, ordering your own lab tests is on a state-by-state basis. Some states allow it and some do not. LabCorp seems to be the most friendly to this in our region. Completely different from what @John Brunner found so try both Quest and Lab Corp. Ordering your own tests only helps if you know what to do with the results, and if you can do something to remedy any issues. Reference ranges can give you some guidance but don't tell the whole story. At-home testing can be a good way to monitor things, but are best used to follow already-diagnoses problems as they are not held to the same standards as the laboratories are, especially in the "outer ranges".

I have mentioned before that I have found that most post-menopausal women are happiest with a TSH of around 1.0 mIU/L even though higher and lower values are considered "normal", so guidance is sometimes needed with results.
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Just for grins & giggles I looked at LabCorp's website. They offer their own test packages that you can purchase here. They have 118 different tests. I can't find any information about getting blood drawn for anyone other than your doctor or a LabCorp test, but that doesn't meant they don't do it. Nor can I find anything regarding restrictions on which states you can/cannot reside in to order a test, but I know the place I ordered my test from did.

I recall that the "LabCorp no longer draws blood for independent labs" info I got was from the website for the place I purchased my micronutrient test from (SpectraCell.) Maybe there was a contractual issue with LabCorp (who SpectraCell used to send people to), because SpectraCell's website no longer lists the lab they previously recommended, and they do not list LabCorp, either.
 
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John Brunner said:
Just for grins & giggles I looked at LabCorp's website. They offer their own test packages that you can purchase here. They have 118 different tests. I can't find any information about getting blood drawn for anyone other than your doctor or a LabCorp test, but that doesn't meant they don't do it. Nor can I find anything regarding restrictions on which states you can/cannot reside in to order a test, but I know the place I ordered my test from did.

I recall that the "LabCorp no longer draws blood for independent labs" info I got was from the website for the place I purchased my micronutrient test from (SpectraCell.) Maybe there was a contractual issue with LabCorp (who SpectraCell used to send people to), because SpectraCell's website no longer lists the lab they previously recommended, and they do not list LabCorp, either.
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LabCorp is based in Burlington, North Carolina. In fact I think they "own" the town, or did when I had contact with them. Quest is diversified and has specialized laboratories all over the country. It is possible that Quest purchased Spectracell so it would not be available to LabCorp. I have been away from healthcare for more than a dozen years now, so all that may have changed, but that is what I remember. The labs are probably not responsible where it is drawn/collected, but the drawing stations would be. I only know about the availability here because a DIL got some tests drawn and were refused by the Quest draw station, but LabCorp, based in a local Walgreens, drew her work with no questions.
 
Don Alaska said:
LabCorp is based in Burlington, North Carolina. In fact I think they "own" the town, or did when I had contact with them. Quest is diversified and has specialized laboratories all over the country. It is possible that Quest purchased Spectracell so it would not be available to LabCorp. I have been away from healthcare for more than a dozen years now, so all that may have changed, but that is what I remember. The labs are probably not responsible where it is drawn/collected, but the drawing stations would be. I only know about the availability here because a DIL got some tests drawn and were refused by the Quest draw station, but LabCorp, based in a local Walgreens, drew her work with no questions.
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Interesting. A few years ago, SpectraCell had said that Labcorp no longer does draws for 3rd parties and they directed everyone nationwide to Quest. Today SpectraCell's website has a list of "Search by Zip Code"places, and shows neither LabCorp nor Quest. They show what appears to be some number of independent places around Richmond (but nowhere else within 100 miles.) Seems rather limiting, and a nightmare to manage nationally. Maybe Quest & LabCorp went into competition with SpectraCell regarding testing products.
 
John Brunner said:
Interesting. A few years ago, SpectraCell had said that Labcorp no longer does draws for 3rd parties and they directed everyone nationwide to Quest. Today SpectraCell's website has a list of "Search by Zip Code"places, and shows neither LabCorp nor Quest. They show what appears to be some number of independent places around Richmond (but nowhere else within 100 miles.) Seems rather limiting, and a nightmare to manage nationally. Maybe Quest & LabCorp went into competition with SpectraCell regarding testing products.
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Like I said, I have been away for a while. It is possible that local hospital labs would draw and either 1) Send it for you for a fee, or 2) Give the blood back to you to send yourself. Some tubes may have to be spun or spun and separated. Sometimes there is more to it than simply collecting samples.

It certainly is possible that the "Big Two" don't want to make it easy for a smaller competitor to operate. Are you still trying to get stuff done @John Brunner ?
 
Don Alaska said:
Like I said, I have been away for a while. It is possible that local hospital labs would draw and either 1) Send it for you for a fee, or 2) Give the blood back to you to send yourself. Some tubes may have to be spun or spun and separated. Sometimes there is more to it than simply collecting samples.

It certainly is possible that the "Big Two" don't want to make it easy for a smaller competitor to operate. Are you still trying to get stuff done @John Brunner ?
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Nope. That micronutrient test was the only time I've ever needed blood drawn outside of a medical practice. I'm glad the subject came up. I had no idea that LabCorp was in the business of consumer-ordered tests...they're all over the place. I set up an account with them, and any time I have lab work done that gets sent to them, I get an email and can download/read the results.
 
John Brunner said:
I had a micronutrient test done a few years ago to test for vitamin deficiencies and a bunch of other stuff. The thing about doing your own lab work is finding a place to draw your blood...and there's a fee for that. LabCorp no longer does "self-directed" tests...they gotta be ordered by an MD. The only place in my region that does it now is called Quest...and they're about 40 miles away from me. Te place I ordered my micronutrient test through had a traveling phlebotomist come to their store. She primarily did blood draws in people's homes for life insurance physicals.

Other than that, I can see someone wanting to monitor their A1C on their own, or as you said, getting a lead test (I also got one of those last year because of my hobby, but my MD ordered it.) There could be a few reasons folks would want to check on stuff (Vit D levels, etc) without waiting to get a doctor appointment or to pay their doctor solely to get a test.
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Sorry to hear that LabCorp no longer does self directed tests. Why no it I pay for it?
 
Mary Stetler said:
Sorry to hear that LabCorp no longer does self directed tests. Why no it I pay for it?
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If, in fact, they don't (and it was on SpectraCell's website that I read that), it might be because they will only draw blood for work in their own labs. So you can do self-directed tests that you purchase from them, but it what SpectraCell said is true (and I've not asked LabCorp), maybe LabCorp doesn't want to draw blood and then hand it to the customer. There could be lots of reasons for that. And they may not want to mess with shipping things to anywhere but their lab.

But that's all conjecture on my part.
 
John Brunner said:
If, in fact, they don't (and it was on SpectraCell's website that I read that), it might be because they will only draw blood for work in their own labs. So you can do self-directed tests that you purchase from them, but it what SpectraCell said is true (and I've not asked LabCorp), maybe LabCorp doesn't want to draw blood and then hand it to the customer. There could be lots of reasons for that. And they may not want to mess with shipping things to anywhere but their lab.

But that's all conjecture on my part.
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That is probably true @John Brunner. We also have independent phlebotomy services here, some of which will come to your home to collect specimens. I have never used them, so I don't know how they work. That, too, may depend on the state. I bet you could get that in Virginia if you sent a letter to your new governor and suggest she legalize that so she could tax it:rolleyes:
 
Don Alaska said:
That is probably true @John Brunner. We also have independent phlebotomy services here, some of which will come to your home to collect specimens. I have never used them, so I don't know how they work. That, too, may depend on the state. I bet you could get that in Virginia if you sent a letter to your new governor and suggest she legalize that so she could tax it:rolleyes:
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She's too busy getting creds for destroying the Old Dominion. Legislation is being introduced to make use of "cartoon images" (memes) illegal in political campaigns. There is a referendum to "make elections fair," meaning give the Dems unilateral redistricting powers because MAGA Republicans are stealing elections, and we need to fight back. There's lots of money being thrown at that one...the Fair Elections referendum.
 
John Brunner said:
She's too busy getting creds for destroying the Old Dominion. Legislation is being introduced to make use of "cartoon images" (memes) illegal in political campaigns. There is a referendum to "make elections fair," meaning give the Dems unilateral redistricting powers because MAGA Republicans are stealing elections, and we need to fight back. There's lots of money being thrown at that one...the Fair Elections referendum.
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Soon they will try to get Ranked Choice Voting in. It allows them to manipulate and cheat in elections while fooling people into thinking they have more options. Ask @Ken Anderson how well it works in Maine. It largely keeps Collins and Murkowski in the Senate.
 
John Brunner said:
She's too busy getting creds for destroying the Old Dominion. Legislation is being introduced to make use of "cartoon images" (memes) illegal in political campaigns. There is a referendum to "make elections fair," meaning give the Dems unilateral redistricting powers because MAGA Republicans are stealing elections, and we need to fight back. There's lots of money being thrown at that one...the Fair Elections referendum.
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Don Alaska said:
Soon they will try to get Ranked Choice Voting in. It allows them to manipulate and cheat in elections while fooling people into thinking they have more options. Ask @Ken Anderson how well it works in Maine. It largely keeps Collins and Murkowski in the Senate.
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And look at Maine's new Red Flag gun law. Confiscation if anyone says you are dangerous. No warning.
 
Mary Stetler said:
And look at Maine's new Red Flag gun law. Confiscation if anyone says you are dangerous. No warning.
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That is what Red Flag Laws do. They allow you to take revenge on anybody who offends you. Just report your noisy neighbors and their guns will be taken away, often with no investigation. The investigation may take place AFTER the fact, and sometimes...you get your guns back.
 
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