You can get checked for breast cancer at several types of facilities, from your regular doctor’s office to dedicated breast imaging centers. The most common screening tool is a mammogram, and most women should start getting one every two years at age 40. Where you go depends on your insurance, location, and whether you need a routine screening or follow-up on something specific.
Your Doctor’s Office
The simplest starting point is your primary care doctor or OB-GYN. During a routine wellness exam, your provider can perform a clinical breast exam, which involves physically checking breast tissue for lumps, changes in skin texture, or other abnormalities. Clinical breast exams are a useful first step, but they don’t replace a mammogram. If anything feels unusual, or if you’re due for screening based on your age, your doctor will refer you to a facility with mammography equipment.
Community health clinics and federally qualified health centers also offer clinical breast exams, often on a sliding-fee scale. These clinics can connect you with imaging services even if you don’t have a regular doctor.
Types of Mammography Facilities
Not all imaging facilities are the same. The main options break down into three categories:
- Full diagnostic radiology practices offer imaging for many parts of the body, not just breasts. These are common in hospitals and large medical groups. They handle mammograms alongside other types of scans.
- Specialty clinics within other practices are imaging facilities housed inside a different specialty office, like an OB-GYN clinic. These can be convenient if you already see a provider there.
- Multi-specialty breast centers are integrated care facilities with breast-specific specialists on site, including oncologists, radiation specialists, and pathologists in addition to radiologists. If your screening finds something that needs further evaluation, these centers can handle every step of diagnosis and treatment planning under one roof.
For a routine screening mammogram with no symptoms or concerns, any accredited facility works well. If you’ve already had an abnormal result, a lump, or you’re at higher risk due to family history, a dedicated breast center offers more coordinated care.
How to Find an Accredited Facility Near You
Every facility that performs mammograms in the United States must be certified under the Mammography Quality Standards Act (MQSA). This means the equipment, staff, and practices meet baseline federal quality standards. The FDA maintains a searchable database where you can enter your zip code and pull up every certified mammography facility in your area. The certification status of facilities can change, so it’s worth checking before you book.
The American College of Radiology also runs an accredited facility search tool on its website. You can search by zip code, city, or state and filter by imaging type. This is especially helpful if you need something beyond a standard mammogram, like breast MRI or ultrasound.
For the highest level of specialized care, look for centers accredited by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), run by the American College of Surgeons. These centers are twice as likely to meet key breast cancer quality measures compared to non-accredited facilities. NAPBC accreditation means the program covers the full continuum of care, from screening and prevention through treatment and survivorship, with a multidisciplinary team. This level of accreditation matters most if you’re dealing with a diagnosis or high-risk surveillance, not necessarily for a standard screening.
Mobile Mammography Units
If getting to a facility is difficult because of distance, transportation, or scheduling, mobile mammography may be an option. These are essentially clinics on wheels, large buses equipped with the same 3D mammography technology found in permanent facilities. They’re staffed by certified breast imaging technologists and often visit community locations like health centers, churches, and social service agencies.
UC Davis Health, for example, operates a mobile unit that travels to federally qualified health centers and rural communities throughout its region, aiming to screen nearly 5,000 women per year. Many hospital systems around the country run similar programs. Mobile units also frequently offer multilingual services and patient navigation to help with follow-up if your results need further evaluation. To find a mobile mammography van near you, check with your local hospital system, health department, or community health center.
What Screening Costs (and What’s Covered)
Under the Affordable Care Act, all Marketplace health plans and most other insurance plans must cover screening mammograms at no cost to you, with no copay or coinsurance, as long as you use an in-network provider. This applies to women age 40 and older and covers mammograms every one to two years. You typically won’t pay anything even if you haven’t met your deductible yet.
If you’re uninsured or underinsured, the CDC’s National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP) provides free or low-cost breast cancer screenings, diagnostic services, and access to treatment for women with low incomes. The program operates through local partners in every state. You can find your state’s program through the CDC website or by calling your local health department.
If you have insurance but aren’t sure whether a specific facility is in-network, call your insurance company before scheduling. A screening mammogram is free under preventive care rules, but a diagnostic mammogram ordered because of symptoms or a previous abnormal result may be billed differently and could involve cost-sharing.
When to Start and How Often
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force updated its recommendations in April 2024. The current guidance is that all women should begin screening mammograms at age 40 and continue every two years through age 74. Previous guidelines had suggested starting at 50 for average-risk women, so if you’ve been waiting, the threshold has moved earlier.
These guidelines apply to people at average risk. If you have a family history of breast cancer, a known genetic mutation like BRCA1 or BRCA2, or a history of chest radiation, your doctor may recommend starting earlier, screening more frequently, or adding breast MRI to your routine. Talk with your provider about your personal risk factors to determine the right schedule.
What to Expect at a Screening
A screening mammogram takes about 20 minutes. You’ll undress from the waist up and stand in front of the mammography machine while a technologist positions each breast between two plates that compress the tissue briefly. The compression lasts only a few seconds per image and can feel uncomfortable, but it’s necessary to get a clear picture. Most facilities take two images of each breast.
You’ll typically receive results within a few weeks, often by mail or through an online patient portal. If something looks unusual, the facility will contact you to schedule additional imaging, which might include a diagnostic mammogram with more detailed views, an ultrasound, or in some cases a biopsy. Getting called back doesn’t mean you have cancer. Most callbacks turn out to be benign findings like cysts or dense tissue that simply needs a closer look.