Hays County reports about 159 gonorrhea cases per 100,000 residents. If you're in San Marcos, Texas, whether you have symptoms or just want peace of mind, you'll find choices to get tested. Public clinics in San Marcos keep costs down, private labs can be faster, and at-home kits trade a clinic visit for convenience. Below, you'll find options that fall into these categories.
Available testing centers
12 testing options are listed for San Marcos, TX. The nearest, CommuniCare Health Centers - San Marcos, is about 1.3 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.
CommuniCare Health Centers - San Marcos, a federally qualified health center in San Marcos, welcomes walk-ins for STI screening without an appointment. A single visit can cover syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia testing, with fees adjusted on a sliding scale tied to household income.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Community Action Incorporated of Central Texas in San Marcos charges on a sliding scale with Medicaid accepted, keeping gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, and HIV testing within reach across income levels. Appointments are required, and STI treatment is available alongside counseling.
Languages
English, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Jun 2026 · Source: CDC NPIN
CommuniCare Health Centers in Kyle tests for gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, HIV, herpes, and hepatitis, treating bacterial infections the same visit. Fees run on a sliding scale accepted by Medicaid, Medicare, and private insurance. An appointment is required.
Many clinics handling STI care in English-dominant offices rely on workarounds when a patient needs to explain symptoms or ask about a diagnosis in Spanish. CommuniCare Health Centers in Kyle delivers that conversation directly, interpretation services and Spanish-language care are built into the clinical encounter, not layered on after the fact.
For anyone without a regular provider, paying cash or navigating gaps in ongoing care, having herpes and hepatitis A, B, and C testing available at the same appointment as the standard bacterial and HIV workup means fewer clinics to coordinate and a more complete picture in a single visit at CommuniCare Health Centers in Kyle.
Languages
English, Interpretation Services Available for Non-English Languages, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Feb 2026 · Source: CDC NPIN + HRSA
Carbon Health in Kyle accepts walk-ins and covers gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, conventional HIV, hepatitis A, hepatitis C, and TB testing in a single visit, with same-visit treatment for bacterial STIs, PrEP, PEP, DoxyPEP, and fees billed to insurance or charged on a standard fee basis.
Carbon Health tests for hepatitis A and hepatitis C in addition to gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, and HIV. Seven pathogens at one visit. Catching hepatitis A or C exposure early changes the clinical path: it opens the door to active monitoring and management rather than an incidental discovery months later.
Leaving Carbon Health in Kyle without a prevention plan (because PrEP, PEP, or DoxyPEP required a separate specialist visit) is a gap this clinic is built to close. All three medications are available on-site, so the decision and the prescription happen at the same appointment.
Carbon Health offers interpretation services for non-English languages, which means every part of the visit (symptom history, treatment instructions, medication guidance) reaches patients in the language they use to make health decisions. That access shapes what care actually gets delivered.
Languages
English, Interpretation Services Available for Non-English Languages
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Jul 2025 · Source: CDC NPIN
CommuniCare Health Centers - Wimberley welcomes walk-ins for STI screening, so same-day care requires no advance planning. Federally qualified and income-based sliding-scale fees make syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia testing financially within reach for patients across the income spectrum in Wimberley.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
A public safety-net federally qualified health center about 15 miles from San Marcos. Sliding-scale STD testing and care are typical here, call ahead to confirm the exact panel and pricing.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
CentroMed in New Braunfels requires an appointment, so visits run on a schedule that keeps wait times predictable, and a single one covers gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, HIV, hepatitis, and TB, with same-visit treatment for bacterial infections and sliding-scale fees for everyone. Spanish-language care is built into the practice.
CentroMed staffs clinicians who conduct the full visit in Spanish (history, counseling, and treatment instructions) so nothing passes through a secondary layer. Dosing instructions, follow-up timelines, and prevention education are communicated directly, in the same language the clinical reasoning happens in.
CentroMed's panel is built to test for hepatitis A, B, and C alongside the standard bacterial and viral infections, and the clinic carries hepatitis A and B vaccines on-site to close any gaps identified. That means a single appointment can both detect and begin to address hepatitis exposure, not just flag it.
Languages
English, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified May 2026 · Source: CDC NPIN + HRSA
Community Health Centers of South Central Texas in Lockhart is a community health center where STI care (gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, and HIV testing, with same-visit treatment for bacterial infections) runs on a sliding-scale fee accepted alongside Medicaid, Medicare, and private insurance. An appointment is required.
Spanish functions as a complete care language at Community Health Centers of South Central not a supplemental accommodation. Clinical conversations, counseling, and HIV test results are handled directly in Spanish by staff, so nothing in the exchange depends on translation after the fact.
Languages
English, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified May 2026 · 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 about 1 mile away; if you'd rather skip the trip, an at-home kit ships to San Marcos, 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 Hays 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.
1301 Wonder World Drive, San Marcos, TX 78666
CMS-certified lab Accredited · Joint Commission
201 Carlson Circle, San Marcos, TX 78666
CMS-certified lab
298 Student Center Drive, San Marcos, TX 78666
CMS-certified lab
1320 Wonder World Dr Suite 108, San Marcos, TX 78666
CMS-certified lab
2810 South Interstate 35, San Marcos, TX 78666
CMS-certified lab Accredited · COLA
Showing the nearest 5 CLIA-certified labs.
Source: CMS CLIA registry (Provider of Services), Q1 2026. Federal public records: active CLIA-certified laboratories near San Marcos. 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, 699 primary-care, OB-GYN, infectious-disease and other clinicians have a CMS practice record within 30 miles of San Marcos. They may be able to evaluate symptoms or order a confidential STD panel during a regular visit, and 262 offer telehealth.
Mariel Bagley, MD
Family medicine · 1430 North Ih, San Marcos
Stephen Richardson, MD
Family medicine · 401 Broadway Street, San Marcos
Kerry Holliman, MD
OB-GYN · 301 North Guadalupe Street, San Marcos
Koteswara Kunda, MD
OB-GYN · 2003 Medical Parkway, San Marcos
John Jackson, MD
Family medicine · 1290 Wonder World Drive, San Marcos
Kapil Painter, MD
Family medicine · 155 Wonder World Drive, San Marcos
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 San Marcos, TX 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.
0.7 mi 
1.1 mi Texas State University Student Health Center Pharmacy
1.2 mi
1.2 mi Medpark Pharmacy
1.5 miShowing the 5 closest pharmacies to San Marcos, TX.
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 San Marcos, 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
From $0 insured
Telehealth PrEP & DoxyPEP with at-home testing and ongoing monitoring
Visit from $39
Online STI treatment & DoxyPEP: same-day prescriptions to your pharmacy
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 Hays County, the county that includes San Marcos, compare with Texas and U.S. averages, based on the most recent 2023 surveillance data. An estimated ~55% of residents are aged 15–34 (ACS), the age group with the highest reported chlamydia and gonorrhea rates nationally.
#50 of 254 Texas counties for chlamydia, a higher rate than 80% of the state
| Infection | Hays County | Texas | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 472.4 1,325 cases ▼ 4% | 491.9 | 492.2 |
| Gonorrhea | 159.4 447 cases ▼ 10% | 176.4 | 179.5 |
| Syphilis (P&S) | 14.6 41 cases ▼ 3% | 15 | 15.8 |
| Syphilis (early) | 13.5 38 cases ▼ 49% | 26.4 | 16 |
| Syphilis (late/unknown) | 19.6 55 cases ▼ 56% | 44.3 | 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 Hays County, chlamydia has risen from 448.4 to 472.4 per 100,000 (5%), gonorrhea has risen from 153.5 to 159.4 per 100,000 (4%), and P&S syphilis has risen from 6.6 to 14.6 per 100,000 (121%).
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 Hays County.
Local HIV snapshot
Hays County HIV care continuum (2023)
Hays County recorded 13.9 new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 (2023), against 20.2 statewide and 13.7 nationally. Among Hays County residents living with HIV, 83.3% are in care · 71.8% 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 Hays County tests for syphilis.
Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus, 2023 (county-level congenital syphilis is not published).
Local resources & officials
Data & references
Local context
Loop 82 curves past H-E-B Park on a weekday afternoon, and most of the clinics listed here are a ten-to-fifteen-minute drive from anywhere along South LBJ Drive. Manageable, but only if the timing works. San Marcos runs heavily on renters, with nearly three in four households paying monthly rather than owning, and a typical rent around a thousand dollars leaves limited cushion for out-of-pocket health costs. That financial reality lands hardest on people in their late teens and twenties, who make up an outsized share of the city's population, precisely the years when regular STI screening matters most and when a co-pay or an afternoon off work feels genuinely costly.
Unemployment here runs higher than the state average, and the workers who do have jobs often hold hourly schedules that don't bend easily around clinic hours. Neighborhoods like Rio Vista and East Guadalupe sit close enough to the Loop 82 corridor that the drive itself isn't the obstacle; the obstacle is carving out the time and the dollars on a stretched budget. Testing options are listed on this page, spanning a range of fees and hours. Enough variety that someone juggling a part-time shift or a tight month can usually find an appointment that doesn't require choosing between a test and a bill.
Getting there
At 7.42/20 on the EPA walkability index, day-to-day errands in San Marcos 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 78666 snapshot
ZIP-level Census figures for the wider 78666 area around San Marcos: a single ZIP can span several communities, so they describe the area, not San Marcos alone.
San Marcos sits in Hays County, ZIP 78666. Local context that shapes where residents test:
Local landmarks
Neighborhoods & communities
Major routes
Nearby cities & towns
Just outside San Marcos? 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 Hays County: the CDC's screening guidelines, each infection's detection window, per-test reference prices, and your privacy rights under Texas 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 San Marcos-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 San Marcos 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 Texas 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 Texas, a minor of any age can consent to confidential STI testing and treatment on their own, no parental permission is required.
Texas 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 TexasSource: 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, Kyle, TX is close; compare it by distance against CommuniCare Health Centers - San Marcos.
Most plans cover STD screening; a clinic or lab can bill insurance, or you can pay a flat self-pay price.
Yes, public clinics in the area offer free or low-cost testing.
Local options test for Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Syphilis, Herpes, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Rapid HIV, a full panel covers the common ones.
About 472 cases per 100,000 residents (2023), below the Texas average.
PrEP (HIV-prevention medicine for HIV-negative people) is available locally, any provider can prescribe it.
In Texas, people under 18 can consent to confidential STD testing and treatment on their own.
No HIV found; just confirm with a retest if you tested soon after a possible exposure.
Some HPV types can lead to cervical and other cancers over time, which is why screening and the HPV vaccine matter.
Public health clinics, family-planning clinics, and many school or campus health centers test teens and young adults, often free.
Have a different question? Browse the full STD & STI FAQ library, every question we answer, in one place.