St. Mary Parish reports about 13 new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 residents, near the US average. Whether you have symptoms or want peace of mind, your options in Patterson, Louisiana depend on when you want to test: some clinics take walk-ins, while labs and at-home kits are on your schedule. We list your options below.
Available testing centers
9 testing options are listed for Patterson, LA. The nearest, Excellence in Total Care, is about 0.5 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.
A public safety-net rural health clinic in Patterson. Sliding-scale STD testing and care are typical here, call ahead to confirm the exact panel and pricing.
Tests offered
A public STD-testing site about 6 miles from Patterson, run as a Federally Qualified Health Center with sliding-scale fees.
Languages
English
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Apr 2026 · Source: CDC NPIN + HRSA
Teche Health @ Morgan City, a federally qualified health center in Morgan City, meets patients who are uninsured, between providers, or paying out of pocket with sliding-scale STI screening (syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia) priced according to income, no appointment required.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Ochsner Health Center in Morgan City accepts Medicaid, Medicare, and private insurance, with a fee schedule for those paying directly, covering gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, HIV, herpes, hepatitis B and C, and TB. Appointments required, with same-visit treatment for bacterial infections. Spanish-language care is available on staff.
Ochsner Health Center in Morgan City carries Spanish-language capability through the entire visit (history, counseling, treatment) not just check-in. For someone without a regular primary care provider who needs STI care explained, prescribed, and followed up in Spanish, that depth makes this a complete clinical option rather than a partial one.
Ochsner Health Center prescribes both PrEP and PEP directly: meaning the medications, monitoring labs, and follow-up counseling stay within the same practice rather than splitting across providers. Ongoing PrEP requires the regular HIV and kidney-function testing built into its prescribing protocol, and the clinic handles that continuity in Morgan City.
Without a primary care provider ordering labs, herpes and hepatitis testing often go unscheduled. Ochsner Health Center in Morgan City builds both into its available panel alongside the standard four. For anyone managing their own preventive care and paying through insurance or directly, getting herpes, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C confirmed at the same appointment closes gaps that a narrower panel would leave open.
Languages
English, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Sep 2025 · Source: CDC NPIN
Louisiana Department of Health in Morgan City brings public-health infrastructure to STI care: rapid and conventional HIV testing, gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, hepatitis C, and TB testing, with same-visit treatment for bacterial infections, by appointment, all at no fee on a sliding scale.
Stopping at cost is its own outcome, an undiagnosed infection, a skipped follow-up, a treatment delayed until symptoms force the issue. Louisiana Department of Health in Morgan City charges nothing for any service it provides, so the appointment that gets made is also the appointment that gets kept and the treatment that gets administered.
Louisiana Department of Health in Morgan City provides interpretation services for non-English-speaking patients across all its services: not as an accommodation arranged after the fact, but as a standing part of how care is delivered, so clinical conversations about results, treatment, and prevention land with full clarity.
Leaving hepatitis C off a panel means a separate appointment, a separate facility, and often a gap where nothing happens in between. Louisiana Department of Health in Morgan City tests for hepatitis C alongside HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and hepatitis. One visit closes what a narrower panel would leave open.
Languages
English, Interpretation Services Available for Non-English Languages
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Oct 2025 · Source: CDC NPIN
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 less than a mile away; if you'd rather skip the trip, an at-home kit ships to Patterson, 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 range: couples & full panels
$79 & up
Best for simplicity & support
$89 & 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 St. Mary Parish, 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.
1097 Northwest Boulevard, Franklin, LA 70538
CMS-certified lab Accredited · Joint Commission
1216 North Victor II Boulevard, Suite 300, Morgan City, LA 70380
CMS-certified lab Accredited · COLA
1125 Marguerite Street, Morgan City, LA 70380
CMS-certified lab
Source: CMS CLIA registry (Provider of Services), Q1 2026. Federal public records: active CLIA-certified laboratories near Patterson. 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, 15 primary-care, OB-GYN, infectious-disease and other clinicians have a CMS practice record within 30 miles of Patterson. They may be able to evaluate symptoms or order a confidential STD panel during a regular visit, and 3 offer telehealth.
Carla Thurston, MD
Internal medicine · 1015 8th Street, Morgan City
William Cefalu Telehealth
Internal medicine · 1151 Marguerite Street, Morgan City
Lianter Albert, MD
Internal medicine · 1151 Marguerite Street, Morgan City
Eric Melancon
Internal medicine · 1151 Marguerite Street, Morgan City
Natalie Dishman, MD
Internal medicine · 1126 Marguerite Street, Morgan City
Roland Degeyter, MD Telehealth
Internal medicine · 502 Haifleigh Street, Franklin
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 Patterson, LA 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.
Fournet's Pharmacy
0.1 mi
2.6 mi 
2.6 mi Medicine Shoppe 1194
2.7 mi
2.9 mi Southern Oaks Pharmacy
5.5 miShowing the 6 closest pharmacies to Patterson, LA.
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 Patterson, 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.
$0 with most insurance
Free online PrEP & DoxyPEP: HIV prevention, home lab kits, no in-person visit
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
Visit from $0 insured
Telehealth STI treatment and sexual-health care, delivered or to your pharmacy
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 St. Mary Parish, the parish that includes Patterson, compare with Louisiana and U.S. averages, based on the most recent 2023 surveillance data. An estimated ~27% of residents are aged 15–34 (ACS), the age group with the highest reported chlamydia and gonorrhea rates nationally.
#41 of 64 Louisiana counties for chlamydia, a higher rate than 36% of the state
| Infection | St. Mary Parish | Louisiana | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 650.3 306 cases ▼ 18% | 792.4 | 492.2 |
| Gonorrhea | 174.3 82 cases ▼ 40% | 288.4 | 179.5 |
| Syphilis (P&S) | 12.8 6 cases ▼ 51% | 26.1 | 15.8 |
| Syphilis (early) | 17 8 cases ▼ 13% | 19.6 | 16 |
| Syphilis (late/unknown) | 31.9 15 cases ▼ 39% | 52.6 | 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 St. Mary Parish, chlamydia has risen from 554.6 to 650.3 per 100,000 (17%), gonorrhea has fallen from 178.1 to 174.3 per 100,000 (2%), and P&S syphilis has risen from 6.1 to 12.8 per 100,000 (110%).
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 St. Mary Parish.
Local HIV snapshot
St. Mary Parish HIV care continuum (2023)
St. Mary Parish recorded 12.9 new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 (2023), against 22.5 statewide and 13.7 nationally. Among St. Mary Parish residents living with HIV, 76.5% are in care · 66.7% 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 St. Mary Parish tests for syphilis.
Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus, 2023 (county-level congenital syphilis is not published).
Local resources & officials
Data & references
Local context
That physical reality shapes how residents think about scheduling a screening: it's less a spontaneous errand and more something you plan around work, kids, and whoever's available to drive. The household profile here adds its own layer. With average households running nearly four people and well over half of adults outside the traditional married arrangement, many residents are younger, still building partnerships, or sharing costs across big family units. Exactly the life stage when regular STI screening matters most but time and money feel tightest.
Rent in Patterson stays modest by most measures, yet when labor-force participation is below the national norm, that monthly payment claims a meaningful share of a household's budget, and clinic co-pays or travel time can tip the decision against going. Fortunately, the testing options listed on this page span a range of fees and hours precisely because a single downtown clinic wouldn't serve Bayou Vista or the stretches beyond it. Picking one that fits your commute path, rather than treating the trip as a separate errand, is the practical move most likely to stick.
Getting there
At 5.71/20 on the EPA walkability index, day-to-day errands in Patterson 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 70392 snapshot
ZIP-level Census figures for the wider 70392 area around Patterson: a single ZIP can span several communities, so they describe the area, not Patterson alone.
Patterson sits in St. Mary Parish, ZIP 70392. Local context that shapes where residents test:
Local landmarks
Neighborhoods & communities
Nearby cities & towns
Just outside Patterson? 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 St. Mary Parish: the CDC's screening guidelines, each infection's detection window, per-test reference prices, and your privacy rights under Louisiana 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 Patterson-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 Patterson 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 Louisiana 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 Louisiana, a minor of any age can consent to confidential STI testing and treatment on their own, no parental permission is required.
Louisiana 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 LouisianaSource: 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.
Possibly, Morgan City, LA is close; compare it by distance against Excellence in Total Care.
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 650 cases per 100,000 residents (2023), below the Louisiana average.
PrEP (HIV-prevention medicine for HIV-negative people) is available locally, any provider can prescribe it.
In Louisiana, people under 18 can consent to confidential STD testing and treatment on their own.
Yes, at-home kits ship to 70392; you collect a sample, mail it back, and get results in about 2–5 days.
A clinic offers same-day answers and on-site treatment; an at-home kit trades that for privacy and convenience, both use real lab testing.
Yes, the CDC recommends STI screening early in pregnancy, since untreated infections can affect the baby.
Have a different question? Browse the full STD & STI FAQ library, every question we answer, in one place.