The Government has conceded that new legislation is required to regularise a scheme in which the pensions of public nursing home residents are used to pay part of the cost of their accommodation in State institutions.
The Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, claimed the scheme was "illegal" after it emerged that legislation was needed to regularise the practice in light of the 2001 Act that gave the medical card to all people over 70 years old.
While Mr Kenny said the Government was now obliged to refund "€100 million-plus" in pensions collected by State institutions since 2001, the Tánaiste, Ms Harney, ruled this out.
But Ms Harney told the Dáil that the Government would have to deal with any claims for refunds for the period from November 5th, when the Attorney General said the new legislation was required.
"If such an issue arose between the time we became aware of the difficulties, in other words, from when we got the Attorney General's advice, and the time new legislation is enacted, we would have to deal with that.
"However, that has not yet arisen. I am awaiting legal advice on that matter."
The legislation is required due to an anomaly outstanding since the 2001 Act was passed. In principle, medical card holders are entitled to free medical care. Despite this, the pensions paid to residents of public nursing homes have gone directly to the institutions.
Ms Harney said the question of refunding the pension money was "not an issue" because the money was taken in good faith.
Her official spokesman said he had "no information to hand" on the amount of pension money collected for State accommodation since 2001 or on the amount collected since November 5th.
It was Government policy that "residents of long-stay facilities would actively contribute some of the cost of their care", he said.
The Tánaiste said she had received advice from the Attorney General which said it would be "legally safer" to have primary legislation in the area instead of relying on regulations.
The legislation would be brought through the Oireachtas after Christmas, she said.
"Any monies taken were taken in good faith. The Attorney General is simply saying that if we are going to take a contribution towards board and lodgings from people in public institutions then, in order to be safe and secure, we should introduce primary legislation.
"That is what we intend to do," she said.
But Mr Kenny said he had legal advice which said "good faith" was not a sustainable defence against an "illegally raised" charge.
"It was not sustainable in the case of the Drug Refund Scheme payment where a Statutory Instrument was not signed but charges that were made had to be subsequently refunded," he said.
He went on to say that AIB was obliged to make repayments when its customers were overcharged.
The Taoiseach and the Government should make a clear statement on the issue "and not rely on a drip feed of information to keep pensioners and their families, who have been illegally charged, informed on this very important matter", he said.
