Access to Centinel Spine's Prodisc L lumbar total disc replacement system is expanding as Aetna has updated its guidelines to include one-level lumbar total disc replacement in its coverage.
An additional 22 million individuals will now be covered for the procedure. Previously, Aetna considered one-level lumbar TDR "experimental and investigational," so it was not covered by the insurer.
In February, Aetna settled a 239-person class-action lawsuit fighting its lack of coverage for the medical procedure.
Now, all major commercial payers cover one-level lumbar TDRs. Over 95 percent of U.S. patients are now covered, according to a March 2 press release.
"This announcement reaffirms the strong clinical and radiographic outcomes found in patients implanted with lumbar total disc replacements," Jack Zigler, MD, a surgeon at Texas Back Institute in Plano who has implanted over 3,000 lumbar TDR systems, said in the release. "Backed by layers of published level one data demonstrating the long-term effectiveness of lumbar TDR over the last 23 years, lumbar TDR has some of the most compelling clinical evidence of any technology that is used to improve the quality of patients' lives."