Any offer to compromise or settle any charges or claim for $20,000 or less asserted by the Department of Veterans Affairs in connection with the medical program shall be referred as follows:

(a) To Chief Financial Officers of the Consolidated Patient Account Centers. If the debt represents charges made under §§17.108, 17.110, or 17.111, the compromise offer shall be referred to the Chief Financial Officer of the Consolidated Patient Account Center (CPAC) for application of the collection standards in §1.900 et seq. of this chapter, provided:

(1) The debt does not exceed $1,000, and

(2) There has been a previous denial of waiver of the debt by the CPAC Committee on Waivers and Compromises.

(b) To Regional Counsel. If the debt in any amount represents charges for medical services for which there is or may be a claim against a third party tort-feasor or under workers' compensation laws or Pub. L. 87-693; 76 Stat. 593 (see §1.903 of this chapter) or involves a claim contemplated by §1.902 of this chapter over which the Department of Veterans Affairs lacks jurisdiction, the compromise offer (or request for waiver or proposal to terminate or suspend collection action) shall be promptly referred to the field station Regional Counsel having jurisdiction in the area in which the claim arose, or

(c) To Committee on Waivers and Compromises. If one of the following situations contemplated in paragraph (c)(1) through (3) of this section applies

(1) If the debt represents charges made under §17.101(a), but is not of a type contemplated in paragraph (a) of this section, or

(2) If the debt represents charges for medical services made under §17.101(b), or

(3) A claim arising in connection with any transaction of the Veterans Health Administration for which the instructions in paragraph (a) or (b) of this section or in §17.105(c) are not applicable, then, the compromise offer should be referred for disposition under §1.900 et seq. of this chapter to the field station Committee on Waivers and Compromises which shall take final action.

[39 FR 26403, July 19, 1974, as amended at 47 FR 58250, Dec. 30, 1982. Redesignated and amended at 61 FR 21966, 21967, May 13, 1996; 62 FR 17072, Apr. 9, 1997; 80 FR 23241, Apr. 27, 2015]