The veteran seeks reimbursement for medical expenses incurred at a non-VA hospital due to emergency treatment. The VA is remanding the case to obtain additional evidence regarding whether prior authorization was provided by VA.
The deciding factor: The issue of prior authorization from VA must be determined before deciding the claim for reimbursement.
- Claimed conditions
- left-sided neck pain, left arm pain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 14, 2008
- Citation
- 0839279
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0839279.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for multiple conditions has been withdrawn by the Veteran.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for left arm pain to schedule a VA examination as there is insufficient evidence to determine if the Veteran's condition is related to her military service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for headaches on the basis that a preexisting disability was aggravated by active military service. The claims for left arm pain, right arm pain, right shoulder pain, and right hip pain are denied as there is no evidence of in-service onset or relationship to service. Service connection for paranoid schizophrenia is dismissed.
- Granted
The Veteran's unauthorized medical expenses incurred at STX Community Care Hospital on October 16, 2019 are approved as the treatment was for a severe condition that posed a serious threat to his health and no VA facility was feasibly available.
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