Gonorrhea reports in Harlan County are 78% lower than the US average. If you've had a recent risk or test regularly, Benham, Kentucky has options. Some clinics take walk-ins for same-day testing while labs and at-home kits let you plan around your own time. We list the options below.
Available testing centers
7 testing options are listed for Benham, KY. The nearest, Mountain Comprehensive Health, is about 1.6 miles away. Compare community and public clinics, private labs, and at-home kits below.
Listings tagged Community health center are federally funded health centers and rural clinics that treat everyone regardless of insurance or ability to pay: required to bill on a sliding fee scale and provide confidential care, and in many states minors may consent to their own STI testing. A Title X tag flags centers funded for confidential family-planning services; confirm current participation when you call.
Source: CMS FQHC & Rural Health Clinic enrollment files (data.cms.gov), refreshed quarterly. Title X status reflects the latest OPA grantee list.
Mountain Comprehensive Health in Cumberland accepts walk-ins for HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, herpes, hepatitis A, B, and C, and TB testing, with same-visit treatment for bacterial infections, HPV and hepatitis vaccines, and sliding-scale fees. All services provided at no fee.
The zero-fee model at Mountain Comprehensive Health isn't a discount program, it's the operating structure. Every test, every vaccine dose administered, every TB or hepatitis treatment course, and every PrEP prescription dispensed on-site runs through the same no-charge framework, with sliding-scale coverage ensuring that structure holds regardless of income.
Mountain Comprehensive Health provides interpretation services for non-English languages, which means the conversation about a hepatitis C treatment plan or a PrEP regimen happens with full comprehension on both sides, and patients leave with an accurate understanding of their care, not a partial one.
Without a clinic that prescribes PrEP and PEP directly, prevention becomes a multi-step errand. A primary visit, a separate specialist, a gap in coverage. Mountain Comprehensive Health carries both prescriptions in-house, so the decision to start HIV prevention doesn't stall waiting for a referral to clear.
Languages
English, Interpretation Services Available for Non-English Languages
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Dec 2025 · Source: CDC NPIN
Stone Mountain Health Services in Appalachia tests for gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, and HIV on a sliding-scale fee structure that accepts Medicaid, Medicare, and private insurance. With same-visit treatment available for bacterial infections. An appointment is required.
Languages
English
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Mar 2026 · Source: CDC NPIN
St. Charles Respiratory Care CTR, in Saint Charles, welcomes walk-ins for STI screening without an appointment. Federally qualified status backs its sliding-scale fees, so cost is tied to income. A single visit can cover syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia testing under one affordable, income-adjusted visit.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Free tool · not a clinic
Testing too soon can miss an infection. Enter the date of possible exposure to see the earliest a test can reliably detect each STI.
| Infection | Earliest reliable test | Conclusive after |
|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 7 days after exposure | 14 days after exposure |
| Gonorrhea | 7 days after exposure | 14 days after exposure |
| Trichomoniasis | 7 days after exposure | 28 days after exposure |
| HIV (NAT / RNA) | 10 days after exposure | 33 days after exposure |
| HIV (4th-gen Ag/Ab) | 18 days after exposure | 45 days after exposure |
| HIV (antibody) | 21 days after exposure | 84 days after exposure |
| Syphilis | 21 days after exposure | 42 days after exposure |
| Hepatitis B | 21 days after exposure | 42 days after exposure |
| Hepatitis C | 56 days after exposure | 77 days after exposure |
| Herpes (HSV) | 28 days after exposure | 112 days after exposure |
Guidance only, confirm timing with a clinician. A negative result before the conclusive date may need a repeat test.
Typical out-of-pocket ranges by option, actual cost depends on which tests you need.
Public / community clinic
Free HIV testing is common
Private lab (self-pay)
Never billed to insurance
At-home kit
Mailed to your door, private
Doctor / urgent care
Often $0 preventive with insurance
No centers match those filters. Clear the service-type filter or the opening-hours filters to see every center.
Every other option
Beyond the dedicated testing centers above: at-home kits by mail, hospital labs certified for STI testing, local clinicians who can order a panel during a regular visit, pharmacies for self-test kits and prescriptions, and online PrEP & treatment.
Test from home
The nearest testing center is about 2 miles away; if you'd rather skip the trip, an at-home kit ships to Benham, you collect the sample privately, and mail it back to a CLIA-certified lab. Results come online in days, with a clinician available if anything is positive. Same labs as a clinic, no waiting room, and you can read how accurate at-home STD tests are before you order.
Want a free option first? The CDC-supported TakeMeHome (opens in a new tab) program mails free at-home HIV self-test kits, and, in many areas, free STI kits, to your door, with no insurance or payment needed. The paid kits below add broader panels and faster turnaround.
In-home collection
$79 & up
Best for simplicity & support
$89 & up
Best value: single tests
$49 & up
Every kit uses CLIA-certified labs. At-home testing is for screening; a reactive result should be confirmed and treated by a clinician. Prices and panels shown are illustrative and change often, confirm current details on the provider's site.
Also in the area
Beyond the public testing sites above, these federally certified (CLIA) labs serve Harlan County, each lab's town is shown on its card below. Many test through a doctor's order or by appointment rather than walk-in, so call ahead to confirm STD/STI testing and availability before visiting.
132 Village Center, Harlan, KY 40831
CMS-certified lab
101 Chad Street, Evarts, KY 40828
CMS-certified lab
120 Professional Lane Suite 101, Harlan, KY 40831
CMS-certified lab
Source: CMS CLIA registry (Provider of Services), Q1 2026. Federal public records: active CLIA-certified laboratories near Benham. A CLIA certificate records only that a laboratory is federally certified — it does not confirm the site performs STD testing, nor its hours, price or access. Inclusion is not an endorsement; always call to verify.
Local clinicians
Beyond dedicated clinics, 122 primary-care, OB-GYN, infectious-disease and other clinicians have a CMS practice record within 30 miles of Benham. They may be able to evaluate symptoms or order a confidential STD panel during a regular visit, and 16 offer telehealth.
Gregory Dye, MD
Family medicine · 1620 East Main Street, Cumberland
Darian Ratliff, MD
Internal medicine · 103 Kingdom Come Drive, Cumberland
Donald Dingus, MD
Family medicine · 205 East 19th Street North, Big Stone Gap
Starla Kiser Telehealth
Internal medicine · 310 Cloverleaf Square, Big Stone Gap
Kelcie Gregory, DO
Internal medicine · 464 Ky Hwy 699, Cornettsville
Shane Mcdougal, MD
Family medicine · 240 Hospital Road, Whitesburg
These are registry-listed clinicians, not dedicated STD-testing clinics. CMS records do not independently verify current licensure, testing services, availability, price, or new-patient status. Confirm each detail before booking. Source: CMS Doctors & Clinicians.
Nearby pharmacies
No pharmacy near Benham, KY publishes an STD-related service or holds a current CLIA testing certificate, so these are simply the closest. Contact a location directly to confirm counter hours, services, prices, and availability before visiting.
1.2 mi Cumberland Drug Company
1.5 miSummit Apothecary
1.9 miAppalachian Regional Healthcare
3.8 miDonell's Tri-City Pharmacy
3.8 miShowing the 5 closest pharmacies to Benham, KY.
Directory records identify nearby pharmacies. Service, stock, price, and hours information is shown only when supported by current location-specific evidence.
Prevention & treatment
Testing is one step. For residents of Benham, telehealth covers the rest: HIV-prevention medication (PrEP) and DoxyPEP to lower future risk, and discreet online treatment if a result comes back positive. All prescribed by licensed U.S. clinicians.
Visit from $0 insured
Telehealth STI treatment and sexual-health care, delivered or to your pharmacy
Visit from $39
Online STI treatment & DoxyPEP: same-day prescriptions to your pharmacy
From $0 insured
Telehealth PrEP & DoxyPEP with at-home testing and ongoing monitoring
$0 with most insurance
Free online PrEP & DoxyPEP: HIV prevention, home lab kits, no in-person visit
Pricing varies by insurance and changes often, confirm on the provider's site. These services are not a substitute for emergency care.
STD stats & rates
How reported STI rates in Harlan County, the county that includes Benham, compare with Kentucky and U.S. averages, based on the most recent 2023 surveillance data. An estimated ~18% of residents are aged 15–34 (ACS), the age group with the highest reported chlamydia and gonorrhea rates nationally.
#89 of 120 Kentucky counties for chlamydia, a higher rate than 26% of the state
| Infection | Harlan County | Kentucky | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 169.8 43 cases ▼ 56% | 381.9 | 492.2 |
| Gonorrhea | 39.5 10 cases ▼ 71% | 134.4 | 179.5 |
| Syphilis (P&S) | 23.7 6 cases ▲ 68% | 14.1 | 15.8 |
| Syphilis (early) | 19.7 5 cases ▲ 36% | 14.5 | 16 |
| Syphilis (late/unknown) | 7.9 2 cases ▼ 58% | 18.9 | 29.5 |
Rates per 100,000 population, 2023. Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus (county, state & U.S., all-ages basis). Population figures: U.S. Census Bureau ACS. These figures are the latest available surveillance estimates. Bars are scaled to the highest rate shown.
Reading these numbers: reported case rates only count infections that were actually tested for and diagnosed, so they track local screening effort as much as true spread: a higher rate can reflect more testing, a lower one less. Either way, most STIs cause no symptoms, so treat the figures above as context rather than a verdict, and test on the CDC's schedule regardless of how your area looks.
Between 2020 and 2023 in Harlan County, chlamydia has fallen from 234.8 to 169.8 per 100,000 (28%), gonorrhea has fallen from 85.7 to 39.5 per 100,000 (54%), and P&S syphilis has fallen from 35.1 to 23.7 per 100,000 (32%).
The 2020 dip reflects reduced pandemic-era screening, not lower transmission. Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus (county, state & U.S., all-ages basis).
Community health context
Sources: CDC PLACES (ZIP), County Health Rankings, CDC/ATSDR SVI, HRSA HPSA, HRSA MUA/P, Neighborhood Atlas ADI. Lower insurance coverage, fewer routine checkups, and a thin primary-care ratio all raise the value of low-cost public clinics and at-home testing in Harlan County.
Local HIV snapshot
Federal priority area: Kentucky is one of the U.S. jurisdictions prioritized under the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative: targeted federal funding to expand local HIV testing, PrEP, and prevention.
Harlan County HIV care continuum (2022)
Harlan County recorded 0 new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 (2022), against 10.4 statewide and 13.7 nationally. Among Harlan County residents living with HIV, 73.3% are in care · 73.3% are virally suppressed. Early, routine testing is what moves these numbers: it is the entry point to PrEP, treatment, and viral suppression.
Sources: AIDSVu (Emory/Gilead) · CDC AHEAD · CDC AtlasPlus · CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus (county care continuum). The CDC recommends everyone aged 13–64 test for HIV at least once: every lab and clinic listed above offers HIV testing, and free rapid HIV testing is available at a local health department.
Congenital syphilis, passed from parent to baby in pregnancy, is the fastest-rising STI in the country. U.S. cases climbed from 2,163 in 2020 to 3,882 in 2023. It is almost entirely preventable: the CDC recommends a syphilis test at the first prenatal visit, and every clinic and lab listed for Harlan County tests for syphilis.
Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus, 2023 (county-level congenital syphilis is not published).
Local resources & officials
Data & references
Local context
KY 160 threads through Benham past the Kentucky Coal Mining Museum and out toward Black Mountain, anchoring a community where nearly two-thirds of adults are married and most households own their homes. Often for decades. That kind of rootedness shapes how health decisions get made: quietly, within households, with practical constraints that have nothing to do with whether someone actually cares about their wellbeing. When labor-force participation is as modest as it is here, a significant share of residents aren't moving on a nine-to-five schedule, but that doesn't automatically translate into free afternoons: caregiving, seasonal work, and the rhythms of a small mountain town fill the calendar in their own ways.
The low typical rent keeps housing costs manageable for the quarter of residents who do rent, but the flip side is that the broader regional economy leaves little cushion for out-of-pocket medical expenses. Young adults in their late teens and twenties, already the years when new relationships and limited routine care overlap, benefit most from options that don't require navigating cost uncertainty just to schedule a visit. Harlan County's STI figures, visible elsewhere on this page, reflect a rural Appalachian county carrying real transmission pressure. For someone settled in Benham, staying current with screening is simply what keeps that county-level picture from becoming a personal one.
Getting there
At 5.32/20 on the EPA walkability index, day-to-day errands in Benham generally mean driving: plan on a car or rideshare to reach a clinic, and check each listing's hours and phone before you go.
Source: EPA National Walkability Index 2021.
ZIP 40823 snapshot
ZIP-level Census figures for the wider 40823 area around Benham: a single ZIP can span several communities, so they describe the area, not Benham alone.
Benham sits in Harlan County, ZIP 40823. Local context that shapes where residents test:
Local landmarks
Neighborhoods & communities
Major routes
Nearby cities & towns
Just outside Benham? These nearby communities have their own testing guides: clinics, at-home kits, and free screening close to home.
Reference
Everything to know before you test in Harlan County: the CDC's screening guidelines, each infection's detection window, per-test reference prices, and your privacy rights under Kentucky law. If you have symptoms right now, our confidential symptom checker maps them to the tests worth considering.
Based on current CDC screening recommendations.
| Group | Tests | How often |
|---|---|---|
| Everyone aged 13–64 | HIV | At least once |
| Sexually active women under 25 | Chlamydia, gonorrhea | Every year |
| Women 25+ with new or multiple partners | Chlamydia, gonorrhea | Every year |
| Pregnant people | HIV, syphilis, hepatitis B & C, chlamydia | Early in pregnancy |
| Gay & bisexual men (MSM) | Chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, HIV | Every 3–6 months |
| Anyone who shares injection equipment | HIV, hepatitis B & C | At least yearly |
| All adults at least once | Hepatitis C | At least once |
Testing too early can return a false negative, confirm timing with a Benham-area provider.
| Infection | Earliest reliable test | Sample |
|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 1–2 weeks | Urine or swab |
| Gonorrhea | 1–2 weeks | Urine or swab |
| Trichomoniasis | 1–4 weeks | Urine or swab |
| HIV (NAT / RNA) | 10–33 days | Blood |
| HIV (4th-gen Ag/Ab) | 18–45 days | Blood |
| HIV (antibody) | 3–12 weeks | Blood / oral |
| Syphilis | 3–6 weeks | Blood |
| Hepatitis B | 3–6 weeks | Blood |
| Hepatitis C | 8–11 weeks | Blood |
| Herpes (HSV) | 4–16 weeks (antibody); swab a sore | Blood / swab |
These are the federal Medicare reference prices for processing each lab test. Public clinics and the community health centers serving Benham often test free or on a sliding scale; private labs and at-home kits bundle several tests into one fee. Use this as a per-test benchmark before you pay out of pocket, or see the full guide to STD test costs for insurance, free, and at-home options.
| Test | Reference price | CPT / HCPCS |
|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia (NAAT) | $47.80 | 87491 |
| Gonorrhea (NAAT) | $47.80 | 87591 |
| Trichomoniasis (NAAT) | $47.76 | 87661 |
| HIV-1/2 antigen/antibody | $26.87 | 87389 |
| HIV-1/2 antibody | $22.44 | 86703 |
| Syphilis (RPR/VDRL) | $5.61 | 86592 |
| Syphilis (treponemal antibody) | $17.49 | 86780 |
| Herpes (HSV NAAT) | $47.76 | 87529 |
| Hepatitis B surface antigen | $15.33 | 87340 |
| Hepatitis C antibody | $29.16 | 86803 |
Source: Medicare Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule, CMS, 2025 rates (data.cms.gov). Reference rate for the lab assay only: a clinic visit, sample collection, or a bundled multi-test panel may cost more. Medicaid and most insurers cover STD screening at no out-of-pocket cost.
Two things that actually depend on Kentucky law: who can consent, and whether partners can be treated without their own visit. Everything else about testing privately is the same nationwide (see below).
In Kentucky, a minor of any age can consent to confidential STI testing and treatment on their own, no parental permission is required.
Kentucky permits Expedited Partner Therapy (EPT): if you test positive for chlamydia or gonorrhea, your provider can give you medication (or a prescription) to pass to your partner, no separate exam or appointment needed for them.
Keeping a test private works the same in every state. Whether an STD test shows on insurance (the EOB), how to test anonymously, and self-pay options that leave no insurance trail don’t change by location.
Learn more about confidential STD testing in KentuckySource: Guttmacher Institute, Minors' Access to STI Services; CDC, Legal Status of Expedited Partner Therapy. General information, not legal advice.
Good to Know
Answers to the questions people ask most before getting tested.
The closest is Mountain Comprehensive Health (1.6 mi); 5 options are within 30 miles.
Medicaid generally covers STD testing, and public clinics test for free regardless of coverage.
Yes, community and public clinics test the uninsured, with sliding-scale fees.
Local options test for Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Syphilis, Herpes, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Rapid HIV, a full panel covers the common ones.
About 170 cases per 100,000 residents (2023), below the Kentucky average.
PrEP (HIV-prevention medicine for HIV-negative people) is available locally, any provider can prescribe it.
In Kentucky, people under 18 can consent to confidential STD testing and treatment on their own.
You self-collect a sample at home, mail it in, and view results online, no clinic visit needed.
Yes, most chlamydia infections cause no symptoms, so screening is the only reliable way to catch it.
Yes, HSV-1 from the mouth can spread to the genital area through oral sex.
Have a different question? Browse the full STD & STI FAQ library, every question we answer, in one place.