Home Administrative Billing & Reimbursement Health and Wellness Medical PEAR portal Pharmacy Products Quality Management

Four drugs to be added to Most Cost-Effective Setting Program for AmeriHealth New Jersey members

June 26, 2018

AmeriHealth New Jersey seeks to ensure that our members receive injectable/infusion therapy drugs in a setting that is both safe and cost-effective for their clinical condition. Since 2012, AmeriHealth New Jersey has been reviewing the most appropriate setting for commercial members to receive certain injectable and infusion therapy drugs as part of the precertification review process.

Drugs included in the Most Cost-Effective Setting Program for AmeriHealth New Jersey members

The following is a complete list of drugs that require precertification approval for medical necessity and setting:*

  • Actemra? (tocilizumab)
  • Adagen? (pegademase bovine) ? NEW FOR OCTOBER 1, 2018
  • Aralast NP? (alpha-1 proteinase inhibitor [human])
  • Benlysta? (belimumab)
  • Cerezyme? (imiglucerase)
  • Crysvita? (burosumab-twza) ? NEW FOR JANUARY 1, 2019
  • ElelysoTM (taliglucerase alfa)
  • Entyvio? (vedolizumab)
  • Exondys-51TM (eteplirsen)
  • Fabrazyme? (agalsidase beta)
  • FulphilaTM (pegfilgrastim-jmdb) ? NEW FOR JANUARY 1, 2019
  • Glassia? (alpha-1 proteinase inhibitor [human])
  • Inflectra? (infliximab-dyyb)
  • Intravenous/subcutaneous immunoglobulin (IVIG/SCIG)
  • IxifiTM (infliximab-qbtx)
  • Lumizyme? (alglucosidase alfa)
  • Naglazyme? (galsulfase) ? NEW FOR OCTOBER 1, 2018
  • Neulasta? (pegfilgrastim)
  • Neulasta? (pegfilgrastim) Onpro?
  • Nucala? (mepolizumab)
  • OcrevusTM (ocrelizumab)
  • Orencia? (abatacept)
  • Prolastin? (alpha-1 proteinase inhibitor [human])
  • Prolia? (denosumab)
  • RadicavaTM (edaravone)
  • Remicade? (infliximab)
  • Renflexis? (infliximab-abda)
  • Sandostatin? LAR Depot (octreotide acetate)
  • Simponi Aria? (golimumab)
  • Soliris? (eculizumab)
  • Somatuline? Depot (lanreotide)
  • Stelara? (ustekinumab)
  • Vimizim? (elosulfase alfa)
  • VPRIV? (velaglucerase alfa)
  • Xolair? (omalizumab)
  • Zemaira? (alpha-1 proteinase inhibitor [human])

*This list of drugs is subject to change.

Note: All biosimilars to the originator products in this program are subject to precertification review for most cost-effective setting.

AmeriHealth New Jersey will add the following drugs to our Most Cost-Effective Setting Program for AmeriHealth New Jersey members as follows:

  • Effective October 1, 2018:
    • ? Adagen? (pegademase bovine)
    • ? Naglazyme? (galsulfase)
  • Effective January 1, 2019:
    • ? Crysvita? (burosumab-twza)
    • ? FulphilaTM (pegfilgrastim-jmdb)

New requests for these four drugs will require review for setting, as well as medical necessity, during the precertification process.

AmeriHealth New Jersey members who have precertification approval to receive these drugs in a hospital outpatient facility may continue treatment in this setting until their current precertification approval expires. At the next precertification review, AmeriHealth New Jersey will evaluate the requested setting and make a coverage determination.

Appropriate setting review

During precertification review, each member?s medical needs and clinical history are evaluated to determine if the drug requested by the provider is appropriate. As part of our Most Cost-Effective Setting Program, AmeriHealth New Jersey also reviews the requested treatment setting for certain drugs covered under the member?s medical benefit to ensure that they are administered in settings that are both safe and cost-effective.

Covered settings for drugs in this program include:

  • a physician's office;
  • the member?s home, where the infusion is administered by an in-network home infusion provider;
  • an ambulatory (freestanding) infusion suite that is not owned by a hospital or health system in our network.

A hospital outpatient facility setting will primarily be considered for AmeriHealth New Jersey members who are receiving an initial dose of any drug in this program, or if there is a clinical rationale that requires the member to receive treatment in that setting. The provider must submit documentation to AmeriHealth New Jersey to support the request for coverage in the hospital outpatient facility. This information will be reviewed and a coverage determination on setting will be made.

Medical policy information

You can find additional information about these drugs in the following AmeriHealth New Jersey medical policies:

  • #08.00.70c: Enzyme Replacement Therapy for Mucopolysaccharidosis (e.g., Aldurazyme?, Elaprase?, Vimizim?, Naglazyme?, Mepsevii?, etc.)
  • #08.01.26: Pegademase bovine (Adagen?)

Note: Medical policies for Crysvita and Fulphila are currently in development. Until these policies are published, requests for these drugs will be reviewed based on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved indication.

To review the medical policies, visit our Medical Policy Portal. Select Accept and Go to Medical Policy Online, then select Commercial, and type the policy name or number in the Search field.


This content was prepared for the Provider News Center and may not be reproduced in any way without the express written permission of AmeriHealth, AmeriHealth HMO, Inc., AmeriHealth Insurance Company of New Jersey.
© 2023 AmeriHealth Site Map        Anti-Fraud        Privacy Policy        Legal        Disclaimer