Patient First (502 W. Broad St., Falls Church) now provides Covid-19 testing. Virus testing is available only at designated Patient First testing centers and is by appointment only. The test that is offered is the RT-PCR (Reverse Transcriptase – Polymerase Chain Reaction) molecular diagnostic test. The test sample is collected at Patient First and is sent to a reference lab for testing.

Testing appointments can be made on-line at patientfirst.com/covid-19/covid-19-testing.

It is for patients who are at least five years old and currently experience symptoms of Covid-19 or meet any of the screening criteria, which is based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Results are typically available in less than 3 days. Patients will receive the test result via text message or through a phone call from a nurse.

For most insured patients, there is no out-of-pocket expense for Covid-19 testing. The visit will be submitted to patients’ insurance.