Diagnostic Blood Panel

Houston Methodist operates outpatient laboratory services across the Houston area with no physician referral required for blood draws at standalone lab locations. The executive health program routinely runs CBC with differential, CMP, HbA1c, fasting glucose, lipid profile, TSH, vitamin D, PSA, C-reactive protein, and urinalysis. Insurance is accepted for covered tests, and CMS-compliant price transparency files are available online. Patients can obtain cost estimates through the MyChart portal or by calling the Patient Financial Advisor line.

Houston Methodist's laboratory services provide access to a full spectrum of diagnostic blood panels at one of the most comprehensively equipped clinical pathology departments in Texas. The main campus laboratory is part of the Department of Pathology and Genomic Medicine, staffed by board-certified pathologists and clinical laboratory scientists who process samples with hospital-grade quality controls and rapid turnaround. For patients undergoing the executive health program, the standard laboratory component includes a complete blood count (CBC) with differential to assess red and white blood cell health, a comprehensive metabolic panel (CMP) covering kidney and liver function and electrolyte balance, fasting glucose and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) for metabolic and diabetes screening, a lipid profile measuring total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and triglycerides for cardiovascular risk stratification, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) to screen for thyroid dysfunction, vitamin D (25-OH) for bone and immune health assessment, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) for men as part of cancer screening, and C-reactive protein (CRP) as an inflammation and cardiovascular risk marker. For standalone outpatient lab visits, no physician referral is required for blood collection at designated Houston Methodist laboratory locations. A physician's order is required for test processing — this can typically be provided by a Houston Methodist primary care physician or the patient's own referring doctor. Major insurance plans are accepted, including Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, Cigna, Community Health Choice, Devoted Health, Humana, Medicare, Texas Medicaid, and UnitedHealthcare. Houston Methodist complies with CMS hospital price transparency regulations, and machine-readable pricing files are published at houstonmethodist.org. Personalized cost estimates for specific tests are available through the MyChart patient portal or via the Patient Financial Advisor team at 855.818.0400. The Texas Medical Center location is accessible from across Houston including the Museum District, Midtown, Greenway Plaza, and West University Place corridors.