Payment, to a social assistance authority, of retroactively granted supplementary benefits

Facts

The dispute concerns the payment, to a social assistance authority, of retroactively granted supplementary benefits. The decision relates to an insured person (H.) who received retroactive supplementary benefits from the Old Age and Survivors' Insurance (AVS) and the Disability Insurance (AI), covering both the period before (October 2002 to December 2002) and after (January 2003 to October 2003) the entry into force of the Federal Act on the General Part of Social Insurance Law (LPGA) on 1 January 2003. The compensation fund of Lucerne and the Administrative Court of the Canton of Lucerne are also parties to the proceedings.

Considerations

The Federal Court ruled that Article 22 paragraph 2 letter a LPGA did not bring about any substantial changes to the existing system of paying retroactively granted supplementary benefits to the social assistance authority that had made advances. The interpretation of the expression "pending the determination of his/her entitlement to supplementary benefits" in Article 22 paragraph 4 of the Ordinance on Supplementary Benefits to the AVS and AI (OPC-AVS/AI) must be made by analogy to the case law relating to Articles 50 paragraph 2 InvIA and 85bis InvIO.

The Court also considered that the retroactive reimbursement of medical expenses by the Supplementary Benefits Act…