Ketamine is still considered investigational/experimental for mental health diagnosis. Insurance carriers only seem to be covering it for pain and prior to anesthesia. This is from a 2018 memo from UHC I found:
Ketamine is considered medically necessary and may be covered for:
- Anesthesia for diagnostic and surgical procedures that do not require skeletal muscle relaxation
- The induction of anesthesia prior to administration of other anesthesia agents
-. As supplemental anesthesia for low-potency agents, such as nitrous oxide
Ketamine is investigational, and therefore not proven or medically necessary for:
- Psychiatric disorders (including, but not limited to depression, bipolar disorder, & posttraumatic stress disorder)
- Chronic pain (including but not limited to nonmalignant pain, Fibromyalgia, neuropathic pain, Complex Regional
Pain Syndrome, Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy)
- Migraine headaches