A U.S. District Court judge in Connecticut has certified a class action against Aetna for systematically denying insurance coverage for transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to treat severe depression.

In her May 4 decision, Judge Janet Hall granted class certification for anyone whose TMS claims were rejected by Aetna as experimental or investigational treatment between Sept. 3, 2009, and July 29, 2016. In the same order, Hall rejected a request to issue an injunction against Aetna and class certification for anyone whose claims may be denied in the future.

The class will consist of at least 458 people who received TMS treatment and whose claims were denied by Aetna based on an exclusion for experimental or investigational treatment. The class will also include 646 people whose requests for pre-authorization for TMS services were denied.