Where can I find COVID testing near me in Covington, LA? Right on Hwy 25. Total Health Urgent Care runs COVID tests in its Hwy 25 office (73015, Suite A), and no appointment is needed. According to the clinic’s services page, you can get a rapid COVID test or a COVID antigen test on site, or a PCR test that’s sent out to a lab. Rapid swab flu testing is available as well, and RSV and strep show up on the clinic’s list of on-site lab tests. The doors stay open 7 AM through 7 PM on all seven days.
Why now? Cleveland Clinic’s Flu (Influenza) overview says U.S. flu season runs October through May, with the most cases usually landing between December and February. RSV joins the mix, and the American Lung Association’s RSV Symptoms and Diagnosis page explains that because RSV symptoms resemble other respiratory viruses spreading in fall and winter, a provider might order testing to determine which virus you have.
Quick answers on COVID and flu testing in Covington
- On-site tests: rapid and antigen COVID tests, rapid swab flu tests, plus strep and RSV. PCR goes out to a lab.
- Walk in: no appointment required, weekends included, at our urgent care in Covington.
- Paying: a $130 self-pay office visit, or use your insurance, since the clinic bills most major health plans itself (see pricing and insurance).
- Emergencies: dial 911 instead of driving in for a swab.
What COVID tests can you get at Total Health Urgent Care?
Total Health Urgent Care offers three kinds of COVID testing: an on-site rapid test, an antigen test, and a send-off PCR. That’s spelled out on the clinic’s urgent care services list, which also covers the other bugs that make the rounds every fall and winter. We built the table below from that page:
Table source: the Total Health Urgent Care services page.
Total Health’s pricing and insurance page lists $130 as the out-of-pocket cost of an office visit, a figure that covers the exam, referrals, and prescribing, and $75 for a self-pay X-ray, with no separate line for a COVID or flu test. Since the menu of services is long, the same page suggests phoning ahead if you want an exact estimate.
Rapid COVID test or PCR: which one is more accurate?
Lab PCR is generally the more sensitive test, and rapid antigen is generally the quicker one. The FDA’s A Closer Look at COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing page says “Antigen tests tend to be highly specific but are typically less sensitive than molecular tests.” That FDA page also explains that most molecular tests are polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, also called nucleic acid amplification tests (NAAT). Here’s our summary of the comparison the FDA page lays out.
Table source: the FDA’s A Closer Look at COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing.
MedlinePlus describes the same tradeoff on its COVID-19 Testing page: rapid tests can be done in minutes, while laboratory tests can take days to complete and include PCR tests. For a firmer number on the rapid side, the Virginia Department of Health’s Precautions When Sick With Respiratory Illnesses page says antigen tests for flu and COVID-19 infections usually return results quickly, around 15 to 30 minutes. A negative result has limits too, and that VDH page says a negative test means the test did not detect the virus, but this doesn’t rule out that you could have an infection.
Is a home COVID test kit enough, or should you test at a clinic?
A home kit is a reasonable first step, but one negative result isn’t the final word. The FDA’s At-Home OTC COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests page says that with most at-home tests, “you should repeat testing following a negative result, whether you have symptoms or not, to reduce your risk of a false negative test result.”
Home flu kits exist too. The FDA’s February 2023 announcement authorized the first over-the-counter at-home test that can detect influenza A and B along with the virus that causes COVID-19. Even so, Cleveland Clinic’s Flu Test article cautions that at-home and over-the-counter flu tests aren’t as accurate or reliable as a flu test your healthcare provider performs.
Heading to our Covington clinic makes sense when:
- Your home test came back negative, you still feel lousy, and you’d like a provider to take a look.
- You’re in a higher-risk group and want to talk about treatment options (see the timing section below).
- You want strep or RSV ruled in or out too, since both are on the clinic’s on-site test list.
When should you get tested for COVID, flu, or RSV?
Cleveland Clinic’s flu overview says that if you think you have the flu, it’s important to get tested early on so that antiviral medications are most effective if your provider prescribes them. For RSV, the MedlinePlus RSV Tests page says test samples should be taken during the first few days after symptoms begin.
Treatment windows are the big reason speed counts:
- Flu: a separate Cleveland Clinic article, Is Tamiflu Right for You?, says, “For Tamiflu to be effective, you must start it within 48 hours of feeling any symptoms.”
- COVID: the FDA’s December 2021 announcement authorizing the first oral COVID-19 antiviral says Paxlovid “should be initiated as soon as possible after diagnosis of COVID-19 and within five days of symptom onset.”
The MedlinePlus Flu page says people more likely to have flu complications include adults 65 and older, pregnant women, children younger than 5, and people with certain chronic health conditions, such as asthma, diabetes, and heart disease. MedlinePlus also advises reaching out to a health care provider when someone in a high-risk group gets flu symptoms, or when you’re very sick or worried. On the COVID side, the American Lung Association’s Antivirals for COVID-19 page says, “If you are high risk for severe illness from COVID-19 and test positive, speak with your healthcare provider right away.”
Is free COVID testing near me still available?
Whether you can find free COVID testing near me now depends on your coverage, because the rules changed after the pandemic emergency. Healthinsurance.org’s FAQ on coronavirus testing and treatment coverage explains that during the COVID public health emergency, most plans were required to cover the full cost of testing. “But that’s no longer the case,” it says. That FAQ adds that comprehensive major medical plans now cover lab-based testing the way they cover testing for any other illness, with the plan’s regular cost-sharing, and that coverage of at-home COVID tests is now optional for health plans.
Medicare is its own story. Medicare.gov’s page on COVID-19 diagnostic laboratory tests says Part B covers them, and that you usually pay nothing when your doctor or other health care provider orders the test and you get it from a laboratory, pharmacy, clinic, doctor’s office, or hospital that takes Medicare. Plans vary, so call (985) 400-5370 to confirm whether yours is accepted at Total Health before you come in. That same Total Health pricing and insurance page says the clinic can bill most major health insurance companies directly, and it asks you to bring your insurance card, along with any secondary card.
When is it an emergency instead of a test?
Call 911 for a medical emergency. The ACEP Flu: Know When to Go to the ER page flags adult warning signs such as difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, pain or pressure in the belly or chest that won’t let up, persistent dizziness, confusion, or inability to arouse, seizures, and a fever or cough that gets better but then returns or worsens. For kids, that ACEP page points to rapid or labored breathing, a bluish tint to the lips or face, ribs that pull in with every breath, and any fever in a baby under 12 weeks old.
When can you go back to work or school after testing positive?
The Virginia Department of Health’s page on Precautions When Sick With Respiratory Illnesses, last updated August 14, 2026, says normal activities can resume once you’ve gone 24 hours with symptoms improving overall and no fever, without help from fever-reducing medication. That page also recommends added precautions for the five days after you’re back.
Where can you get walk-in COVID testing near Mandeville, Madisonville, and Abita Springs?
Typing urgent care near me from Abita Springs, Mandeville, Madisonville, Folsom, Franklinton, or St Benedict? Total Health Urgent Care is on Hwy 25 near Hwy 190, and it welcomes patients from every one of those towns and across St. Tammany Parish. To our minds, the best urgent care for a respiratory test has on-site testing, walk-in access, weekend hours, and a posted self-pay price. Here’s what our Covington walk-in clinic offers:
- On-site testing: COVID, flu, strep, and RSV, plus send-off PCR for COVID.
- No appointment needed: walk in, or use the appointment request form on our contact page.
- Seven-day schedule: open at 7 AM, closed at 7 PM, weekends too.
- A posted cash price: self-pay visits run $130.
What other questions do people ask about COVID testing near me?
Walk-ins are welcome for COVID tests at Total Health’s Covington clinic. The clinic’s urgent care page says walk-in patients are welcome and an appointment isn’t required. If you’d rather plan ahead, the contact page has a form for requesting an appointment, and the front desk follows up with the opening that best fits your schedule. Weekend hours at Total Health match the weekday schedule.
Yes, Total Health Urgent Care offers PCR COVID testing. The clinic’s services page lists send-off PCR along with on-site rapid and antigen COVID testing. The FDA’s A Closer Look at COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing page puts turnaround for traditional laboratory tests at several hours to days.
Rapid COVID testing is quick. MedlinePlus says rapid tests can be done in minutes, and the FDA’s Closer Look page says most currently authorized antigen tests provide results in less than an hour. The Virginia Department of Health puts antigen results for flu and COVID at around 15 to 30 minutes.
Total Health tests for flu and RSV as well as COVID. The clinic’s services page lists rapid swab flu testing, and its CLIA waived on-site testing includes flu, strep, and RSV. The American Lung Association’s RSV Symptoms and Diagnosis page says a healthcare provider might order testing to determine which virus you have based on your medical history, time of year, and a physical exam.
There’s no separate COVID test price on the clinic’s website. The pricing and insurance page sets the self-pay office visit at $130, covering the exam, referrals, and prescribing, and it suggests checking by phone at (985) 400-5370 if you want your out-of-pocket total pinned down.
Usually, yes. The FDA’s At-Home OTC COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests page says that with most at-home tests, you should repeat testing following a negative result, whether you have symptoms or not, to reduce your risk of a false negative. If you still feel sick, a visit to Total Health can check for flu, strep, or RSV as well.
Feeling run-down and ready for answers? Swing over to 73015 Hwy 25 (we’re in Suite A) any day of the week between our 7 AM start and 7 PM finish. Got insurance questions before you drive over? Dial (985) 400-5370.
Our Total Health Urgent Care team prepared this COVID testing guide for Northshore families this fall. Founding NP Jennifer Duncan, APRN, MSN, FNP-C, logged more than 25 years working in emergency and urgent care medicine before opening the clinic. This page offers general health information and isn’t a diagnosis, so ask a provider about what you’re feeling.