Until recently, adolescents only had two treatment options for depression.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for adolescents in March, now represents a safe and effective third option.

While TMS is relatively expensive compared to treatment modalities like pharmaceuticals, payers are increasingly covering the service for teens.

Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), a large, customer-owned health insurer, is the latest to cover TMS as a first-line treatment option for adolescents 15 and older with depression.

“This milestone policy by HCSC is a testament to the growing recognition that our young people need earlier access to proven mental health treatments like NeuroStar TMS,” Keith Sullivan, president and CEO of Neuronetics, said in a statement. “We commend HCSC for their leadership in patient access, as well as our NeuroStar providers and Health Policy team for their advocacy to create positive change for mental health.”

HCSC’s decision brings TMS coverage to more than 15 million lives covered through BlueCross BlueShield (BCBS) Illinois, BCBS Montana, BCBS New Mexico, BCBS Oklahoma and BCBS Texas.

The coverage specifically applies to Neuronetics’ NeuroStar Advanced Therapy for Mental Health product, the first and only TMS treatment approved for adolescents aged 15 to 21, according to a Wednesday press release.

Differing from its TMS coverage for adults, HCSC covers TMS as a first-line treatment for teens, meaning that teens are not required to have tried and failed other treatments. HCSC requires that adults with depression try and fail two medications combined with psychotherapy.

Fail-first policies can be a significant barrier for patients seeking depression treatment, so HCSC’s teen policy makes depression treatment more accessible for this population only.

Since the FDA’s approval in March, more and more payers are offering coverage for the services. Earlier this month, BCBS of North Carolina added TMS coverage for adolescents. Aetna, California Medicaid and Humana are among the payers who have also expanded coverage for the service. 

Experts predict this trend will continue, and payers will widely adopt coverage for TMS services for teens. 

As of August, about 425 claims were submitted to payers for adolescent TMS. None of these claims were denied, Sullivan previously told Behavioral Health Business.

“I anticipate all of the payers are going to follow suit [and cover TMS for teens],” Sullivan said. “They just have to get enough claims from physicians submitted, and then they’ll change. Nobody is going to fight getting a child treated.”