BIRMINGHAM – Legal Services Alabama (LSA) is proud to announce the addition of a new Medical Legal Attorney working in the Cahaba Medical Care Foundation to address patients’ legal needs. This strategic attorney role is part of LSA’s continued effort to bridge the gap between health and legal needs and ensure comprehensive advocacy for vulnerable populations across the state.
Medical-Legal Partnerships (MLP) are a collaborative model that integrates legal services into the healthcare setting to address and resolve health-harming legal needs. The concept is based on the understanding that many health issues are influenced or exacerbated by underlying legal or social problems. Medical-Legal Partnerships allow providers of both healthcare and legal aid to offer holistic care for clients.
According to Cara Morse, the new LSA MLP Attorney, “Physical and mental health are indisputably affected by any kind of legal problem – the two subject matters are intertwined. But people have difficulty identifying their own legal issues. The partnership creates the opportunity for both LSA and Cahaba to provide holistic, comprehensive services to clients in Jefferson County.”
The Medical Legal Attorney will work closely with healthcare providers and community organizations to address social determinants of health, including access to benefits, housing stability, and family law issues like domestic violence.
Objectives of the MLP include trainings and education between legal experts and healthcare workers about the health, legal and policy issues that affect low-wealth Alabamians. The partnership will also focus on securing additional funding through grants and volunteer attorney participation to create a pilot project for expanding MLP work to other regions in the state.
The new position is integral to LSA’s mission to remove obstacles to health and stability for low-income residents. By collaborating with healthcare professionals, LSA can reach more clients experiencing issues such as access to healthcare, disability claims, and support for patients experiencing domestic violence or other critical legal needs.
“Being on-site removes the barriers for clients to connect with us,” says Morse.
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The LSA law firm provides free, client-centered, civil legal advocacy to low-income Alabamians and collaborates with others across the state and nation to find solutions to systemic issues caused by poverty and social justice inequities. LSA is one of the preeminent legal aid organizations in the country in bridging the civil justice gap through its recognized commitment to racial, social, and economic justice and support of a talented, diverse, and innovative staff.
LSA offices are located in Anniston/Gadsden, Birmingham, Dothan, Huntsville, Mobile, Montgomery, Selma and Tuscaloosa. LSA offices handle civil cases only. Each office has lawyers licensed to practice in Alabama and other staff who know how to help low-income people resolve their legal problems.
