- 01Results reach your portal before the doctor's review
Since 5 April 2021, holding a finished result back so the doctor sees it first counts as information blocking unless a narrow exception applies, so your portal usually shows the result as soon as it is final and your doctor's comment follows 3.
To get your lab results, check your patient portal, then the lab's own app, and if neither has them, ask the ordering office in writing. You have a legal right to a copy from the moment the lab finalizes the result. Since 5 April 2021, US rules on information blocking (keeping your own health information from you without a valid reason) mean the portal copy usually arrives before your doctor's comment 3.
Three places to look for your results
- 1Open your patient portalIf your doctor or hospital uses MyChart or a similar portal, look under Test Results or Labs. This is the fastest route and usually needs nothing from you except a login.
- 2Check the lab's own appQuest Diagnostics results appear in MyQuest and Labcorp results in Labcorp Patient. Sign up with your name and date of birth exactly as they appear on the lab order.
- 3Ask the office in writingIf neither shows the result, send a portal message or written request to the office that ordered the test. A written request starts the HIPAA clock.
| Route | How fast | What you need |
|---|---|---|
| Clinic or hospital portal (MyChart and others) | Usually as soon as the result is final | A portal account linked to that practice |
| Lab app (MyQuest, Labcorp Patient) | Usually within a day of the result being final | An account matching the name and date of birth on the order |
| Written request to the doctor's office | Up to 30 calendar days by law, often much sooner | A short written request; no visit, no reason |
| Request to the lab directly | Up to 30 calendar days by law | Proof of identity; labs have had to answer patients since 2014 |
Where your results go after the blood draw
How a blood sample becomes a result you can read
The lab is a route many people forget. A 2014 joint rule from CMS, CDC and the HHS Office for Civil Rights amended CLIA (the federal law that regulates US labs) so that laboratories themselves must hand completed test reports to patients who ask, without going through the doctor 4. Direct-to-consumer testing companies and <a href="/compare/best-at-home-blood-tests">at-home kits</a> post results to their own dashboards; ask them for the PDF so you hold a copy outside their site.
Getting results from Quest, Labcorp or a hospital lab
For Quest Diagnostics, create a MyQuest account and link it with the name and date of birth that were on your lab order; if the spelling differs from the order, results may not appear. Labcorp works the same way through Labcorp Patient. Both apps show results once they are final, though some ordering practices set a short release delay. Hospital labs feed the hospital's own portal, which is often MyChart, and veterans can find VA results in My HealtheVet. Once you have a Quest or Labcorp report open, our guides to <a href="/learn/how-to-read-quest-results">reading Quest results</a> and <a href="/learn/how-to-read-labcorp-results">reading Labcorp results</a> walk through each part of the page.
Results not showing in MyChart or the lab app
- The test is still pending. One result in a panel can stay pending while the rest are back.
- The result went to a different practice's portal, such as the specialist who ordered it.
- The office set a release delay, or you asked for results to be held until someone talks you through them.
- Your lab account details do not match the name or date of birth on the order.
- If none of these fits, message the office or call the lab and ask where the report was sent.
How long do lab results take?
| Test type | Usual wait | Why |
|---|---|---|
| <a href="/learn/cbc-explained">CBC</a>, <a href="/learn/metabolic-panel-explained">basic or comprehensive metabolic panel</a> | Same day to 2 days | Run on automated analyzers in most labs, many times a day |
| <a href="/learn/how-to-read-your-lipid-panel">Lipid panel</a>, HbA1c (3-month blood sugar), TSH (thyroid) | 1 to 3 days | Routine but sometimes batched |
| Vitamin D, B12, ferritin, most hormones | 2 to 7 days | Run in batches or sent to a regional lab |
| Specialty tests sent to another lab (Lp(a), an inherited cholesterol particle; genetic tests; rare antibodies) | Several days to 2 weeks or more | Shipped to a reference lab (a large specialist lab) that runs them less often |
| Cultures and pathology (biopsies) | Several days to 2 weeks | Organisms need time to grow; tissue is read by a pathologist |
Each test in a panel runs on its own schedule, so one line can show as pending after the rest are back. Labs must report any result outside critical limits to the responsible clinician immediately under CLIA rules (42 CFR 493.1291(g)) 5, so a dangerous value never depends on someone checking the portal.
Why you can see results before your doctor calls
The 21st Century Cures Act, signed in December 2016, banned information blocking. The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) published the detailed rule in May 2020, with compliance required from 5 April 2021, and from 6 October 2022 it covered all electronic health information in your record 3. Holding a finished result back so the doctor can see it first, without fitting a listed exception, can count as information blocking 3.
The exceptions are narrow. A clinician can delay a specific result only after an individual judgment that releasing it is reasonably likely to endanger your life or physical safety, or someone else's 3. You can also ask for your own results to be held until someone talks you through them, and some portals, including MyChart, let you set this yourself.
Should I open them before my doctor has?
A survey of 8,139 patient-portal users, published in JAMA Network Open in 2023, found that almost everyone wanted results right away, even before a clinician had reviewed them 2. The same survey found that 16.5% of people with results that were not normal felt more worried after reading them before hearing from a clinician, against 5.0% of people with normal results 2. So most people want the result straight away, but a flagged number read alone can still cause a bad night.
| Open them now if | Ask to wait if |
|---|---|
| You want time to prepare questions before the appointment | The test is for something serious, such as a biopsy or cancer screen, and you would rather hear it in person |
| The test is routine, such as an annual panel or a recheck | You know a single flagged number will keep you up |
| You track your numbers over time and want the trend | You have nobody to talk it through with until the visit |
What to do while you wait for your doctor
- Read the H and L marks first: our guide to <a href="/learn/lab-report-flags-explained">lab report flags</a> explains why a mildly flagged result is often unremarkable, though only your clinician can say what it means for you.
- Use the reference range printed on your own report, because ranges differ between labs; <a href="/learn/reference-ranges-explained">reference ranges explained</a> covers why.
- Put the result next to your last one, since <a href="/learn/trends-beat-single-readings">trends beat single readings</a>.
- Check what could have skewed it: <a href="/learn/fasting-before-a-blood-test">fasting</a>, a hard workout, a recent illness or <a href="/learn/supplements-that-affect-blood-tests">a supplement</a>. <a href="/learn/biotin-and-blood-tests">Biotin</a> is the best-known example and can distort thyroid and heart tests.
- Write down your questions so the follow-up call or visit answers them.
Your legal right to a copy if the office won't send it
...an individual has a right of access to inspect and obtain a copy of protected health information about the individual in a designated record set, for as long as the protected health information is maintained in the designated record set.HIPAA Privacy Rule, 45 CFR 164.524(a)(1)
In plain words: you have a legal right to see and get a copy of your own medical records, including lab results. A doctor's office, hospital or lab must act on your request within 30 calendar days, with one 30-day extension allowed only if it tells you in writing why and by when 1. You can ask for an electronic copy in the format you want if the provider can readily produce it, and the provider cannot require you to state a reason or attend a visit to get your results 1. The fee must be reasonable and cost-based; HHS allows an optional flat fee of up to $6.50 for electronic copies of records held electronically, as one method of charging 1.
If an office ignores or refuses the request, you can file a complaint with the HHS Office for Civil Rights, which enforces the right of access 1.
Old results, a new doctor, or someone else's results
Results from years ago
CLIA requires labs to keep test reports for at least 2 years after the report date, and longer for pathology (42 CFR 493.1105) 5. For older results, ask the clinician's office or the hospital, whose record is kept for longer under state law.
Switching doctors
Download your results from the old portal, or send the old practice a written request for your record. Many portals also let you share a record directly with a new practice.
A child's or a parent's results
A parent or other personal representative (someone legally allowed to make health decisions for the patient) generally has the same right of access as the patient under HIPAA 1. State law can give teenagers control over some results, such as sexual health tests, so many portals limit a parent's proxy access (a linked login that lets you see another person's portal) from around age 12 or 13. For an adult parent, ask their provider to set up proxy access with the parent's written consent, or use a healthcare power of attorney.
Getting your results in the UK
Many GP practices in England now show new test results in the NHS App. If yours does not, or you want older records, make a subject access request: under UK GDPR it must usually be answered within one month and is normally free 6. Private UK testing services post results to your own account on their site.
Keep a copy you can compare next year
Save the values as well as the file, because next year's result means more when you can compare it with this year's. If you only have a paper copy, a clear photo or scan is enough to keep the numbers. If you plan to paste a report into an AI tool, read <a href="/learn/is-it-safe-to-upload-lab-results-to-ai">whether it is safe to upload lab results to AI</a> first, and for a method that works on any report, see <a href="/learn/how-to-read-any-lab-result">how to read any lab result</a>.
Free, no accountRead your blood testGot your results? Upload the report and read every marker in plain language, free.Read my results
Citations
- HHS Office for Civil Rights. Individuals' right under HIPAA to access their health information, 45 CFR 164.524.
- Steitz BD et al. Perspectives of patients about immediate access to test results through an online patient portal. JAMA Netw Open 2023;6(3):e233572. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.3572
- Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT. Information blocking (21st Century Cures Act Final Rule, 45 CFR Part 171).
- CMS, CDC and HHS OCR. CLIA Program and HIPAA Privacy Rule; Patients' Access to Test Reports, Final Rule. 79 Fed Reg 7290, 6 February 2014.
- eCFR, 42 CFR Part 493 (CLIA): test reports and critical values (493.1291) and record retention (493.1105).
- Information Commissioner's Office. Right of access (subject access requests), UK GDPR guidance.
Educational context only, not medical advice or a diagnosis. Always discuss your results with a clinician.
