The Veteran's medical expenses at St. Cloud Hospital on April 30, 2018 are covered as it was a medical emergency and the nearest VA facility with an emergency department was not feasibly available.
The deciding factor: The treatment provided constituted a medical emergency due to the battery failure of the ICD which the Veteran relied upon for his health condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Ischemic cardiomyopathy, Atrial-ventricular block, Left bundle branch block
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 11, 2019
- Citation
- 19178296
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a TERA-specific VA medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's ischemic cardiomyopathy is related to his in-service exposure to toxins, including asbestos.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for coronary artery disease, ischemic cardiomyopathy, aortic aneurysm as secondary to coronary artery disease, and arrhythmia as secondary to coronary artery disease. Sleep apnea was remanded for further consideration.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between any of his fatal conditions and his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the appeal to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error regarding the evidence of record at the time of the agency of original jurisdiction's decision.
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