Facts
The case concerns a 68-year-old woman, an AHV/AVS beneficiary, who had to undergo amputation of her left arm following a heart operation. She requested the old-age and survivors' insurance (AHV/AVS) to provide her with an adapted arm prosthesis, but her request was rejected on the grounds that arm prostheses are not included in the list of auxiliary means provided for in the Ordinance on Old-Age and Survivors' Insurance (OAAO/OMAV). The woman appealed against this decision, and the cantonal administrative court upheld her appeal, finding that the exclusion of arm prostheses from the list was arbitrary. The Federal Social Insurance Office (FSCO/OFAS) then appealed against this decision to the Federal Supreme Court of Insurance (FSCA/LTF).Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court of Insurance (FSCA/LTF) considers that, although Art. 43ter of the Federal Act on Old-Age and Survivors' Insurance (OASIA/LAVS) does not expressly link the right to auxiliary means to a list established by the Federal Council, the latter or the Federal Department of the Interior (FDI/DFI) to whom the competence has been delegated, has a wide margin of appreciation to determine the auxiliary means to be included in the list. However, this margin is not unlimited, and the court can review whether the exclusion of an auxiliary means from the list is arbitrary, i.e., if it is not based on serious and objective reasons. In the present case, the Federal Supreme Court (FSCA/LTF) considers that the exclusion of arm prostheses…