State and School Employees' Health Insurance Plan - Spravato (esketamine)

POLICY NUMBER

S.5.01.537

Spravato (esketamine)

Please perform a search of the State Health Plan Medical Drug Formulary for drugs administered and billed through the medical setting.

DESCRIPTION

Spravato (esketamine) is the active isomer of ketamine, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist. Spravato (esketamine) is indicated for the treatment of treatment-resistant depression (TRD) in adults as monotherapy or in conjunction with an oral antidepressant and for the treatment of depressive symptoms in adults with major depressive disorder (MDD) with acute suicidal ideation or behavior in conjunction with an oral antidepressant.

POLICY

Spravato (esketamine) is considered not medically necessary as there are other alternatives covered by the Plan for treatment of treatment-resistant depression and major depressive disorder.

Spravato (esketamine) is considered investigational for all other conditions not outlined in this policy including but not limited to anesthesia, chronic pain, bipolar depression, and migraines.

Services related to delivery and/or administration of a medication determined to be not medically necessary will also be considered not medically necessary.

POLICY EXCEPTIONS

None

POLICY GUIDELINES

Medical Policy Manual coverage guidelines should not be used in lieu of the Participant's specific benefit plan language outlined in the Mississippi's State and School Employees’ Life and Health Insurance Plan.

Medically Necessary is defined as those services, treatments, procedures, equipment, drugs, devices, items or supplies furnished by a covered Provider that are required to identify or treat a Participant’s illness, injury or Mental Health Disorders, and which Company determines are covered under this Benefit Plan based on the criteria as follows in A through D:

A. consistent with the symptoms or diagnosis and treatment of the Participant’s condition, illness, or injury; and

B. appropriate with regard to standards of good medical practice; and

C. not solely for the convenience of the Participant, his or her Provider; and

D. the most appropriate supply or level of care which can safely be provided to the Participant. When applied to the care of an Inpatient, it further means that services for the Participant’s medical symptoms or conditions require that the services cannot be safely provided to the Participant as an Outpatient.

For the definition of medical necessity, “standards of good medical practice” means standards that are based on credible scientific evidence published in peer-reviewed medical literature generally recognized by the relevant medical community, and physician specialty society recommendations, and the views of medical practitioners practicing in relevant clinical areas and any other relevant factors. BCBSMS makes no payment for services, treatments, procedures, equipment, drugs, devices, items or supplies which are not documented to be Medically Necessary. The fact that a Physician or other Provider has prescribed, ordered, recommended, or approved a service or supply does not in itself, make it Medically Necessary.

BCBSMS may request medical records for determination of medical necessity. When medical records are requested, letters of support and/or explanation are often useful, but are not sufficient documentation unless all specific information needed to make a medical necessity determination is included.

Investigative is defined as the use of any treatment procedure, facility, equipment, drug, device, or supply not yet recognized as a generally accepted standard of good medical practice for the treatment of the condition being treated and; therefore, is not considered medically necessary. For the definition of Investigative, “generally accepted standards of medical practice” means standards that are based on credible scientific evidence published in peer-reviewed medical literature generally recognized by the relevant medical community, and physician specialty society recommendations, and the views of medical practitioners practicing in relevant clinical areas and any other relevant factors. In order for equipment, devices, drugs or supplies [i.e, technologies], to be considered not investigative, the technology must have final approval from the appropriate governmental bodies, and scientific evidence must permit conclusions concerning the effect of the technology on health outcomes, and the technology must improve the net health outcome, and the technology must be as beneficial as any established alternative and the improvement must be attainable outside the testing/investigational setting.

POLICY HISTORY

01/01/2026: New policy added.

SOURCE(S)

Spravato prescribing information. Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. August 2025. Last accessed January 2026.

CODE REFERENCE

This may not be a comprehensive list of procedure codes applicable to this policy.

Not Medically Necessary Codes

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