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Denied

The Veteran's unauthorized medical expenses incurred on February 15, 2013 at the Eastern Niagara Hospital were not authorized by VA and an application was not made to VA within 72 hours after admission. The Board found that reimbursement under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1728 is not warranted due to the availability of a feasibly available VA medical facility.

The deciding factor: The Veteran's condition required immediate attention, but he self-treated and left the hospital against medical advice, indicating that he considered it safe to do so.

Claimed conditions
Not specified in this decision
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
October 21, 2014
Citation
1446604

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 1446604.

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