Notwithstanding the provisions of § 17.1002, payment or reimbursement under 38 U.S.C. 1725 for ambulance services, including air ambulance services, may be made for transporting a veteran to a facility only if the following conditions are met:

(a) Payment or reimbursement is authorized under 38 U.S.C. 1725 for emergency treatment provided at a non-VA facility, or payment or reimbursement would have been authorized under 38 U.S.C. 1725 for emergency treatment had:

(1) The veteran's personal liability for the emergency treatment not been fully extinguished by payment by a third party, including under a health-plan contract, or by VA; or

(2) Death had not occurred before emergency treatment could be provided;

(b) The veteran is financially liable to the provider of the emergency transportation;

(c) The veteran does not have coverage under a health-plan contract that would fully extinguish the medical liability for the emergency transportation (this condition is not met if the veteran has coverage under a health-plan contract but payment is barred because of a failure by the veteran or the provider to comply with the provisions of that health-plan contract);

(d) If the condition for which the emergency transportation was furnished was caused by an accident or work-related injury, the claimant has exhausted without success all claims and remedies reasonably available to the veteran or provider against a third party for payment of such transportation; and the veteran has no contractual or legal recourse against a third party that could reasonably be pursued for the purpose of fully extinguishing the veteran's liability to the provider; and

(e) If the veteran is not eligible for reimbursement for any emergency treatment expenses under 38 U.S.C. 1728.

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 1725) [66 FR 36470, July 12, 2001, as amended at 83 FR 979, Jan. 9, 2018; 88 FR 10841, Feb. 22, 2023]