Controversial cases on payments for temporary disability leave: practice of Social Insurance Fund of the Russian Federation

Disputes on the refusal to reimburse expenses for open temporary disability leaves involving the Russian Social Insurance Fund (SIF) are often associated with incorrect interpretation of regulations governing the procedure for the payment of compulsory social insurance benefits. There is a common practice that regional branches and officials of the Russian SIF incorrectly define the legal nature of such disputes and file claims against improper defendants, with whom they have no legal relationship, or against proper defendants but based on facts beyond the scope of its responsibilities. In addition, there are cases of challenging the temporary disability leaves opened by physicians and healthcare providers by referring to the lack of legal basis.

In some cases, such disputes contradict the general direction of ongoing medical activities as they only formally assess the actions of the attending physician opening a temporary disability leave, affecting the interests of society and the state in limiting the spread of contagious and/or socially significant diseases. Such cases occur when it is required to isolate exposed persons in the context of quarantine for an identified infection.

Thus, it seems appropriate to analyze controversial cases, determine their origin, and propose possible options for solving them.