The Board denied the Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of medical expenses incurred at a private hospital on March 1, 2014 because his condition was not emergent to the extent that VA facilities were not feasibly available and an attempt to use them beforehand would not have been reasonable due to distance and lack of self-driving capability.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's perception of emergency did not meet the criteria as he had several options for treatment, including a nearby VA facility, and his condition was not emergent enough to warrant immediate medical attention at a VA facility.
- Claimed conditions
- unknown
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 25, 2018
- Citation
- 18113861
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 18113861.
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
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