Monteris Medical announced today that Cigna released a national coverage policy supporting the use of its laser ablation therapy.
The medical coverage policy considers Minnetonka, Minnesota-based Monteris’ robot-assisted, MR-guided laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT or laser ablation) medically necessary in the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy and symptomatic brain tumors and radiation necrosis when medical necessity is met and the patient is not suitable for open brain surgery, according to a news release.
Cigna, one of the biggest payors in the U.S., awarded the coverage policy following recently issued position statements on the use of LITT for epilepsy and brian tumors, respectively, by the major neurological societies, according to Monteris. Additionally, LITT was included in guidelines issued by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network and Category Level 1 CPT codes approved by the American Medical Association with an effective date of January, 2022.
Monteris’ LITT treatment has shown in a growing body of peer-reviewed clinical evidence that it can decrease morbidity and offer faster recovery time, shorter hospital and intensive care stays and access to lesions not amenable to open surgery.
“Cigna and other national payors have progressively widened access to care for the patients we serve. This policy announcement is the latest in a continuum of advancements for LITT, establishing its position in the care pathway for patients and their families afflicted by brain tumors and epilepsy,” Monteris Medical President & CEO Martin J. Emerson said in the release.