Citation Nr: A24014635 Decision Date: 03/26/24 Archive Date: 03/26/24 DOCKET NO. 201021-193076 DATE: March 26, 2024 ORDER Entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical treatment on December 6, 2019, is dismissed. Entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical treatment on December 7, 2019, is dismissed. Entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical treatment on December 9, 2019, is dismissed. Entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical treatment on December 10, 2019, is dismissed. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The VA Office of Community Care Payment Operations and Management has granted payment for services provided on December 6, 2019, by XRA Medical Imaging Inc. 2. The VA Office of Community Care Payment Operations and Management has granted payment for services provided on December 7, 2019, by XRA Medical Imaging Inc. 3. The VA Office of Community Care Payment Operations and Management has granted payment for services provided on December 9, 2019, by XRA Medical Imaging Inc. 4. The VA Office of Community Care Payment Operations and Management has granted payment for services provided on December 10, 2019, by XRA Medical Imaging Inc. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The appeal for the issue of entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-VA medical treatment on December 6, 2019, is moot. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1703, 1725, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 17.52, 17.121, 20.205. 2. The appeal for the issue of entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-VA medical treatment on December 7, 2019, is moot. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1703, 1725, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 17.52, 17.121, 20.205. 3. The appeal for the issue of entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-VA medical treatment on December 9, 2019, is moot. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1703, 1725, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 17.52, 17.121, 20.205. 4. The appeal for the issue of entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-VA medical treatment on December 10, 2019, is moot. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1703, 1725, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 17.52, 17.121, 20.205. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran served honorably on active duty from September 1967 to August 1969. These matters come before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from July 2020 administrative decisions of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). In October 2020, the Appellant filed a VA Form 10182, Decision Review Request: Board Appeal and elected the Direct review docket. Therefore, the Board may only consider the evidence of record at the time of the agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ) decision on appeal. 38 C.F.R. § 20.301. 1. Entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-VA medical treatment on December 6, 2019, is dismissed. 2. Entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-VA medical treatment on December 7, 2019, is dismissed. 3. Entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-VA medical treatment on December 9, 2019, is dismissed. 4. Entitlement to payment or reimbursement of expenses for non-VA medical treatment on December 10, 2019, is dismissed. The Appellant provided services to the Veteran on December 6, December 7, December 9, and December 10, 2019. In July 2020, multiple Explanations of Payment were issued for nonpayment, stating the claims were unable to be processed as the services were referred by a Community Care Network (CCN) contractor, and directing the appellant to submit the claims to the contractor specified in the authorization or contract. During the pendency of this appeal, the claim was administratively reviewed and then reprocessed for payment for the episodes of care in June 2021 for the December 6, December 7, December 9, and December 10, 2019, dates of service. The VA Office of Community Care Payment Operations and Management (POM) reopened the claim, assigned new claim numbers, and submitted payment for the four claim numbers (ending in 1000, 9000, 1000, and 5000 respectively). Payment was issued in May and June 2021. The evidence of record reflects the December 2019 services provided by Appellant were approved under 38 U.S.C. § 1703 payment authority. Decisions under the Veterans Community Care Program (effective June 6, 2019), including those relating to payment for services, do not fall within the Board's jurisdiction. 38 U.S.C. § 1703 (f) ("The review of any decision under [the VCCP] shall be subject to the Department's clinical appeals process, and such decisions may not be appealed to the Board of Veterans' Appeals"). The Board has not provided the Appellant with notice as to this jurisdictional defect under 38 C.F.R. § 20.104(c). Such notice is ultimately unnecessary here. Unlike situations where clarification or additional information from an appellant may help the Board determine its jurisdiction (such as cases where an appellant explains a reason for an untimely filing or provides additional context for what issues are being appealed), there is no response from the Appellant that could possibly vest the Board with jurisdiction over this appeal, as Congress itself has specifically limited that jurisdiction. Ultimately, to allow for such notice would only unduly delay the inevitable here, requiring unnecessary expenditure of the Board's time and resources. Additionally, the evidence of record reflects the Appellant's claims were processed and paid, the issue of entitlement for payment for services rendered December 6, December 7, December 9, and December 10, 2019, by Appellant are moot. In this case, the record indicates that the AOJ has reviewed and administratively approved payment for the non-VA medical services provided to the Veteran on December 6, December 7, December 9, and December 10, 2019, representing a full grant of the benefits sought in this appeal. As a result, there is no remaining allegation of error of fact or law for appellate consideration in the present appeal. See 38 C.F.R. § 20.104. Accordingly, the Board no longer has jurisdiction over the appeal, and it is therefore dismissed. See 38 U.S.C. § 7104. Therefore, the Board does not have jurisdiction to review the Appellant's claims, and they are dismissed. Bethany L. Buck Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Lowman, R. M. The Board's decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.