COVID-19 Employee Testing Information

SMU continues to provide access to convenient COVID-19 testing for employees and their families, including adjunct faculty and their families, with the following options.

Blue = Off Campus Testing
administered by health professional

Yellow-at home testing
self-administered

My Labs Direct provides drive-through PCR testing for employees and their families at various locations throughout the metroplex. Appointments may be scheduled Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. by calling 877-355-7978. Please be sure you inform the representative that you are an employee of SMU. No virtual visit is required prior to testing.

The University covers 100% of the cost and no insurance paperwork is needed for those who have SMU health benefits.

Virtual Care for Families has locations around the DFW area. (Make sure to scroll down to Step 3 for testing locations.) Screening and testing costs are covered by SMU. In order to schedule a test, you must first book a virtual visit using this link. Enter "SMU - COVID-19 test" in the reason for the visit and click on the "self-pay" button. The closest location to campus is on the corner of Preston Road and Forest Lane. Other locations in Arlington, Frisco, Garland, McKinney and Plano may be convenient to your home or along your commute to and from work. They are open 7-days a week.

Testing is also available free of cost to you and your benefits-eligible dependents through your SMU benefits at pharmacies, health care providers and testing sites off campus. Additionally, the Department of Health and Human Services, State of Texas and Dallas County offer resources of where to find COVID-19 tests:

SMU’s health benefits provider, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX), is providing coverage for at-home COVID-19 tests, as now required by the federal government.

Here is what you need to know:

• The over the counter (OTC) diagnostic tests must be FDA-authorized.
• Costs are covered up to $12 per test from an in-network pharmacy or through a direct-to-consumer shipping program. (Benefit eligible members can order COVID-19 tests directly through a vendor partner, such as Walgreens and other major pharmacy chains.)
• An extensive network of participating pharmacies (more than 65,000) is available under this BCBSTX coverage.
• No prescription or health assessment from a provider is required.
• Up to eight (8) tests are allowed per covered member, every 30 days.
• Coverage is effective through the end of the federal public health emergency

IMPORTANT: Some pharmacies may offer tests in the regular store shelves, not behind the counter where prescriptions are filled and where pharmacists are accustomed to processing insurance.

To purchase the at-home test without having to file a reimbursement claim, check with your pharmacy and be sure to bring your BCBSTX card with you. Otherwise, if you purchase at the main checkout counter, you will need to save the receipt, and file a claim for reimbursement (form below). OTC tests purchased prior to January 15, 2022, are not in scope and will not be reimbursed.

If you order your test online from an in-network pharmacy, you can file a claim by using the form below:

Reimbursement Form

Residential households in the U.S. are now eligible for another order of free at-home tests on USPS.com. Here's what you need to know about your order:

Each order now includes #8 rapid antigen COVID-19 tests (FDA has more details about at-home tests, including extended shelf life and updated expiration dates: Authorized At-Home Over-the-Counter COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests)
Your order of #8 tests will come in #2 separate packages (#4 tests in each package), each with its own tracking number
Packages will ship free

Please note ordering through this federal program will be suspended on Friday, September 2. 2022.