The Board denied the Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized private medical treatment because there was no prior VA authorization and the treatment did not constitute an emergency. The evidence showed that the Veteran had other service-connected disabilities, but his condition at the time of the treatment was not considered to be an emergent situation.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the treatment provided by a non-VA facility was not for a condition of such severity that delay in seeking immediate medical attention would have been hazardous to life or health. The Veteran's statements about his symptoms were inconsistent with the objective findings from the emergency room physician.
- Claimed conditions
- insect bites, ant bite
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 18, 2011
- Citation
- 1110906
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 1110906.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection for sarcoidosis and insect bites during a June 2012 Board hearing. The remaining issue of an initial disability rating in excess of 10 percent for Osgood-Schlatter disease of the right knee, status post surgery, with residual scar and osteoarthritis is being remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for hernia, insect bites, and hearing loss. The claim for PTSD was granted with an effective date of December 31, 2002. The TDIU claim was also granted with an effective date of December 31, 2002.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
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