O09.211 Insurance Policy Changes

Fetal Fibronectin, Inflammatory Biomarkers, and Salivary Hormone Testing for Preterm Labor (CPB 0166, reviewed 2026-04-21)

Aetna considers the fetal fibronectin (fFN) immunoassay medically necessary to evaluate pregnant women with symptoms of preterm labor who are considered high-risk for preterm delivery when amniotic membranes are intact, cervical dilation is less than 3 cm, sampling occurs no earlier than 24 weeks 0 days and no later than 34 weeks 6 days of gestation, and results will be available quickly enough to influence real-time decisions for suspected preterm labor. A repeat fFN immunoassay is medically necessary when the member meets all of the same criteria and remains symptomatic 2 or more weeks after a previous negative fFN immunoassay. Fetal fibronectin testing for routine screening of the general obstetric population, for asymptomatic high-risk women, for identifying optimal cerclage candidates, and following cervical cerclage insertion is experimental, investigational or unproven, as are the biomarker, inflammatory marker, proteomic, metabolomic and salivary hormone tests named for preterm birth prediction.