When your provider needs lab tests to guide your care, they place a lab order. The order is sent to one lab, and you get a message in your Secure Care Inbox when your lab order is ready.

This article explains each step, how long it usually takes, when to reach out to us, and what to do if something doesn't go to plan.

Each stage has its own clock. Count results from the day your sample is collected, not from the day the order was placed.

During your appointment, tell your provider which lab you want to use and which tests you are hoping for. They decide which tests to order and are appropriate. A lab order is for a condition you discussed with your provider. If you want labs for a new concern, or your last visit for that condition was more than 6 months ago, book an appointment first (see Requesting a lab order below).

Circle Medical does not collect samples in clinic. The order goes to a partner lab, or you can take the lab order PDF to an independent lab that accepts it.

The PDF lists the sample. An order can include:

Each order is sent to one lab, even if it contains multiple requested samples. We cannot move it to a different partner lab after it is sent. See I want to go to a different partner lab below.

The lab is named in your New Lab Order message. That will be Labcorp, Quest Diagnostics, or Sonora Quest.

Partner labs receive the order electronically. An independent lab does not. If you want an outside facility, you take them the PDF. See I want to use an independent lab below.

Tip: Call your insurance before you go and ask which labs are in network. The lab bills your plan directly. The copay for your Circle Medical visit does not include the lab.

Once we send your lab order, you'll get a message in your Secure Care Inbox titled New Lab Order.

It names the lab, includes the PDF of your lab order, and links to a place to book. The lab may call this PDF a requisition. It is the same document.

If the message says you have other pending tests at the same lab, ask the lab to collect all of them at the same time.

This message is sent automatically and you can't reply to it. If you have a question about your order, start a chat with the support team instead.

Do not go in for the sample until you have that message and its PDF.

Follow the lab named in your New Lab Order message. We recommend bringing the PDF, even if you were told the lab already has the order on file. The Quest or Labcorp app often does not list a Circle Medical order until the sample has been provided and processed.

Book ahead if you can. Many locations also take walk-ins. Scheduled patients are usually seen first. Confirm the location can collect every sample on your order.

Fasting. Fast only if your provider told you to, and only for the tests that require it. Blood tests are the ones that usually require fasting. Water, black coffee, or tea (no additions) only for 10 hours.

Some orders need a swab instead of, or in addition to, a blood draw. Examples include certain STI tests, a vaginitis swab, and an HSV culture. The New Lab Order PDF names the test.

Call the lab named in your message before you go. Many Labcorp and Quest locations do not collect swabs.

If that lab will not collect the swab, take the PDF to another clinic, some pharmacies or community health centers, or an urgent care that accepts the lab order PDF. Bring the PDF, a photo ID, and your insurance card. Ask whether they need the lab order PDF signed by your provider. If they do, start a chat before you go so your provider can provide one.

Some swab tests take longer than 7-10 days.

If the swab is collected somewhere other than the partner lab on your order, send us the results. See Sending results from an outside lab below.

Most results show up in the Circle Medical app or web portal within 7-10 days of collection, and the same PDF is sent to your Secure Care Inbox. Some tests, including some swabs, take a few weeks. Your provider can tell you if one of yours is in that group.

On the web app, open Health, then Lab results. That page lists results we have received. It does not show an order that is still waiting on collection or still processing. No lab results on file means we have not received the result yet.

Quest or Labcorp can show the sample as still processing, or can show a result, before the file reaches Circle Medical. We do not get a live update from their portal.

When we receive results from the lab on your order, you get the PDF in Secure Care Inbox and under Health, then Lab results. The PDF can show a value outside the lab's reference range as soon as it arrives. Seeing that number is not your provider's interpretation.

Your provider reviews the results within 4-5 days of that message. The review includes any out-of-range values. They then send a summary and recommendations in Secure Care Inbox. You will not get a separate message only because a value is out of range. The summary is where your provider tells you whether it needs action, and whether you should book a follow-up visit.

If you have symptoms, or the result worries you, book an appointment. You do not need to wait for the summary. Chat cannot interpret a result.

If the sample was collected somewhere other than the lab named on your New Lab Order message, those results are not sent to us automatically. You or that facility need to send them before your provider can review them.

Uploaded records usually take 3-5 business days to be added to your chart and shared with your provider. Until then, Lab results can still say No lab results on file. This clock is separate from the 7-10 days a partner lab needs to finish a test, and from the 4-5 days your provider takes to review a result we have already sent you.

Most lab orders move on schedule. To avoid a wait for an update that is already on its way, use these checkpoints:

Learn how to start a new chat with the support team.

Your lab order may still be on its way to the lab. You will not have a PDF until the New Lab Order message arrives. If it is not there the day after your appointment, start a chat and we'll check the order. Do not give a sample until you have the PDF.

An order stays at the lab named in the message. We cannot move a Quest order to Labcorp, or the other way around.

Before the sample is collected: start a chat and name the lab you want. A provider cancels this order and places a new one. Cancelling does not create the new order by itself. Wait for a new New Lab Order message that names that lab, then book from that message and bring that PDF. The first PDF will not be drawn at the other partner lab.

After the sample is collected: the order stays at the lab that collected it.

Start a chat with the lab named in your original message, the location you visited, and the date. Tell us whether a sample was collected. If they collected the sample, send us the results. See Sending results from an outside lab above.

You can take the lab order PDF to an independent lab or another outside facility if they accept it. Circle Medical does not send the order to that facility electronically. You usually do not need a new order.

If the facility will not accept the lab order PDF, use the partner lab named in your message, or start a chat if you need a different partner lab. For a swab the partner lab will not collect, see Swab samples under Step 4.

Quest or Labcorp can show a result before we have the file. No lab results on file means Circle Medical has not received it yet. If it has been 7-10 days since collection, or longer for a test your provider said would take weeks, start a chat.

The PDF can show an out-of-range value as soon as we receive it. Your provider's summary follows within 4-5 days of that results message. If the summary is not there after 4-5 days, start a chat so we can check that your provider received it. If you feel unwell, book a visit rather than waiting.

How long is my lab order valid? Count from the date of the New Lab Order message. That is the day the order was sent. Most Labcorp, Quest, and Sonora Quest locations will collect the sample for 6 months from that date. Some locations accept an older order up to 12 months. Some do not. Outside facilities set their own rules, so ask when you call.

Circle Medical does not cancel the order on that date. You will not get an expiration notice. If the message is more than 6 months old, call the location before you go. If they will not accept it, start a chat. A provider has to place a new order, and will likely recommend an appointment.

This 6 months is how long the lab will usually accept an order that was already sent. It is separate from the window for asking your provider to order new labs, below.

Can I request labs without a new appointment? Start a chat and tell us which labs you need if both of these are true:

Your provider reviews every request. It is up to them whether to send the order from that appointment or to ask you to book another appointment first.

What if it is a new concern? If you did not discuss that condition with your provider, or your last appointment for it was more than 6 months ago, book an appointment first so your provider can decide which labs, if any, are right.

The lab bills your insurance directly. A lab bill is not a Circle Medical bill, and the copay for your Circle Medical appointment does not include the lab.

Circle Medical does not set the lab’s price and cannot tell you what you will owe.

Before you give your sample, ask the lab for an estimate. Ask for both numbers:

In some cases the self-pay price is lower than using insurance. The lab is the only place that can compare those prices for your tests and your plan.

If the lab sends you a balance after the visit, contact the lab. Contact your plan if the question is about coverage, a deductible, or a denial. Circle Medical cannot resubmit the lab’s claim.

If the estimate is more than you can pay, start a chat before you give the sample. Tell us the lab’s estimate and which tests are on your order. Your provider may be able to discuss alternatives.

If insurance will not cover a urine drug screen and you want to buy one yourself, that path is in Urine drug monitoring (UDM) at Circle Medical.

Prior authorizations from your insurance are often not needed for lab testing. They may be required for specialized or expensive tests like genetic testing. Check with your insurance if a prior authorization is required, and discuss options with your provider.