The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses incurred at a non-VA facility on November 3, 2007 was denied because VA facilities were available and the emergency did not meet the criteria.
The deciding factor: VA facilities were feasibly available and using them beforehand would have been reasonable, sound, wise, and practicable.
- Claimed conditions
- Left Shoulder Pain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 10, 2014
- Citation
- 1454530
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 1454530.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for right shoulder pain, left shoulder pain, and left upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome. The conditions are considered to be directly related to the Veteran's military service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran requested to withdraw his appeal for the listed conditions, and the Board has dismissed the appeal as a result.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for low back, right shoulder, left shoulder, right hip, and left hip disorders based on the Veteran's active duty service. The conditions are considered to be directly related to his military duties.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for left eye condition, bilateral knee pain, low back pain, and bilateral shoulder pain due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The Veteran's STRs are incomplete and need to be obtained, as well as VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of any diagnosed disabilities.
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