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Aetna Begins Coverage of CardioDx's Coronary Artery Disease Test

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – CardioDx today announced that Aetna has established a clinical policy for the Corus CAD gene expression test for coronary artery disease.

As a result, members of Aetna and Coventry Health Care will have access to the test. According to Aetna's website, it serves about 44 million lives. Coventry, which Aetna acquired in 2013, has about 5 million members. CardioDx said that Aetna considers the test medically necessary for evaluating non-diabetic adults with chest pain or anginal equivalent symptoms but who have no prior history of obstructive CAD.

The Corus CAD test provides a current-state assessment of obstructive CAD by analyzing the expression of genes associated with atherosclerosis. It was launched in 2009 and received Medicare Part B coverage in August 2012. CardioDx, which filed for an initial public offering in October, said that about 49 million Medicare beneficiaries have access to the test as a covered beneficiary.

The Redwood City, Calif.-based company processes Corus CAD test samples in its CLIA-certified and CAP-accredited clinical laboratory.

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