Gonorrhea rates in Unicoi County run about 56% lower than the US average. If you've had a recent risk or simply test on a regular schedule in Unicoi County, Tennessee, you have the option of clinics that may bill insurance or offer sliding-scale fees, or private labs where you can pay a flat self-pay price. The list below should help.
Available testing centers
9 testing options are listed for Unicoi, TN. The nearest, Dry Creek Medical Center, is about 4.4 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.
Dry Creek Medical Center in Erwin welcomes walk-in patients without an appointment, making same-day STI care straightforward. Federally qualified status backs a sliding-scale fee structure tied to income, and a single visit can cover screening for syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
East Tennessee State University College of Nursing, in Johnson City, calibrates its fees to each patient's income. The federal health center model that ensures cost never bars care. Walk-in STI screening covers syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia without an appointment needed.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Johnson City Community Health Center welcomes walk-ins for STI screening, no appointment needed. Backed by federal FQHC funding, it ties fees to income on a sliding scale. A single visit can cover syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia testing for patients across the income spectrum.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Johnson City Downtown Day Center, serving Johnson City, carries federal community health center standing that ties STI screening costs directly to each patient's income. Walk-ins are welcome, no appointment needed, for sliding-scale syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia testing across the full income spectrum.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Tennessee Department of Health in Erwin requires an appointment, and that single scheduled visit covers HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, hepatitis C, and TB testing alongside same-visit bacterial STI treatment, PrEP, DoxyPEP, and HPV and hepatitis A and B vaccines. All at no fee.
The no-fee structure at Tennessee Department of Health in Erwin applies to the full roster: testing, treatment, vaccines, PrEP, and DoxyPEP alike. There is no tiered schedule where some services carry a charge; the sliding scale bottoms out at zero across the board.
Tennessee Department of Health in Erwin has interpretation services available for non-English languages, which means clinical discussions (exposure counseling, medication adherence education, TB treatment planning) proceed in a language other than English when needed, without rescheduling or a separate referral.
Tennessee Department of Health in Erwin carries PrEP, PEP, and DoxyPEP as standing prescribing capabilities. Useful for anyone without a regular provider who needs prevention medication and doesn't want to navigate multiple specialists. PrEP is additionally available at no cost for uninsured patients.
Languages
English, Interpretation Services Available for Non-English Languages
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Feb 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 4 miles away; if you'd rather skip the trip, an at-home kit ships to Unicoi, 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 value: single tests
$49 & up
Best range: couples & full panels
$79 & 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.
Local clinicians
Beyond dedicated clinics, 491 primary-care, OB-GYN, infectious-disease and other clinicians have a CMS practice record within 30 miles of Unicoi. They may be able to evaluate symptoms or order a confidential STD panel during a regular visit, and 80 offer telehealth.
Stephen Miller, MD
Family medicine · 213 University Parkway, Johnson City
Mary Axelrad, MD
Family medicine · 917 West Walnut Street, Johnson City
Jason Mckinney
Internal medicine · 310 North State Of Franklin Road, Johnson City
Todd Fowler, MD
Family medicine · 410 North State Of Franklin Road, Johnson City
Robert Means, MD
Internal medicine · 325 North State Of Franklin Road, Johnson City
Martin Olsen, MD
OB-GYN · 325 North State Of Franklin Road, Johnson City
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 Unicoi, TN 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.
3.5 mi K -VA -T Food Stores
5.6 mi
6.0 mi 
6.2 mi 
6.4 mi Ballad Health Pharmacy
6.8 miShowing the 6 closest pharmacies to Unicoi, TN.
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 Unicoi, 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 $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
$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
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 Unicoi County, the county that includes Unicoi, compare with Tennessee and U.S. averages, based on the most recent 2023 surveillance data. An estimated ~19% of residents are aged 15–34 (ACS), the age group with the highest reported chlamydia and gonorrhea rates nationally.
#68 of 95 Tennessee counties for chlamydia, a higher rate than 28% of the state
| Infection | Unicoi County | Tennessee | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 197.1 35 cases ▼ 62% | 517.4 | 492.2 |
| Gonorrhea | 78.8 14 cases ▼ 58% | 186.4 | 179.5 |
| Syphilis (P&S) | — no data | 14.8 | 15.8 |
| Syphilis (early) | — no data | 11.5 | 16 |
| Syphilis (late/unknown) | 5.6 1 cases ▼ 79% | 26.4 | 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 Unicoi County, chlamydia has fallen from 228.7 to 197.1 per 100,000 (14%), gonorrhea has fallen from 111.6 to 78.8 per 100,000 (29%), and P&S syphilis has fallen from 16.7 to 5.7 per 100,000 (66%).
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 Unicoi County.
Local HIV snapshot
Unicoi County HIV care continuum (2022)
Unicoi County recorded 0 new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 (2022), against 14.8 statewide and 13.7 nationally. Among Unicoi County residents living with HIV, 88.9% are in care · 88.9% 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 Unicoi County tests for syphilis.
Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus, 2023 (county-level congenital syphilis is not published).
Local resources & officials
Data & references
Local context
Nestle Creek runs through a town where nearly three-quarters of residents own their homes, many of them long-rooted families who've watched the ridgelines of Buffalo Mountain and Pinnacle Mountain frame the same horizon for decades. That stability shapes daily life in Unicoi in practical ways: households here tend to be larger than the national average, and close to half of adults are married, which means healthcare decisions often get folded into shared schedules and shared budgets rather than made alone. For younger adults in their late teens and twenties (a modest slice of Unicoi's population, but the years when STI exposure tends to peak) that household context matters. So does the labor picture: with a majority of working-age residents participating in the workforce, the rhythm of Monday-through-Friday jobs leaves little room for midweek appointments that require planning ahead.
Quillen Parkway to reach the nearest clinic is the realistic path, not a quick walk-in. Rent here remains low enough that cost alone needn't be the barrier it is in pricier markets, yet that doesn't automatically make a test easy to schedule. Knowing which listed option accepts walk-ins, or offers evening hours, is the detail worth confirming before you leave the trailhead parking off Haynes Knob Road.
Getting there
At 5.35/20 on the EPA walkability index, day-to-day errands in Unicoi 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 37692 snapshot
ZIP-level Census figures for the wider 37692 area around Unicoi: a single ZIP can span several communities, so they describe the area, not Unicoi alone.
Unicoi sits in Unicoi County, ZIP 37692. Local context that shapes where residents test:
Local landmarks
Major routes
Nearby cities & towns
Just outside Unicoi? 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 Unicoi County: the CDC's screening guidelines, each infection's detection window, per-test reference prices, and your privacy rights under Tennessee 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 Unicoi-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 Unicoi 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 Tennessee 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 Tennessee, a minor of any age can consent to confidential STI testing and treatment on their own, no parental permission is required.
Tennessee 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 TennesseeSource: 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, Johnson City, TN is close; compare it by distance against Dry Creek Medical Center.
Most plans cover STD screening; a clinic or lab can bill insurance, or you can pay a flat self-pay price.
Yes, Tennessee Department of Health (7.3 mi) offers free testing, and public clinics serve the uninsured.
Local options test for Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Syphilis, Herpes, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Rapid HIV, a full panel covers the common ones.
About 197 cases per 100,000 residents (2023), below the Tennessee average.
PrEP (HIV-prevention medicine for HIV-negative people) is available locally, any provider can prescribe it.
In Tennessee, people under 18 can consent to confidential STD testing and treatment on their own.
It's reassuring, but if you tested early in the window period, retest a few weeks later to be sure.
Medical records are protected under federal HIPAA law, ask the clinic how it handles your information.
They can, swollen groin nodes can accompany herpes, syphilis, or early HIV, so mention them when you test.
Have a different question? Browse the full STD & STI FAQ library, every question we answer, in one place.