Aspire adds legal aid services
Aspire Indiana Health believes that a person’s overall wellbeing is not just limited to their physical health, but also their mental health and the total environment in which they exist -- where they live, who they live with, where they work, and so on. These are things that don’t necessarily show up on a person’s medical chart but are absolutely critical to their long-term health and happiness. We refer to them as the Social Determinants of Health.
As a nonprofit provider of comprehensive healthcare services, Aspire has long prided itself on creating innovative support programs to address these determinants. Historically these have focused primarily on three areas: housing and employment assistance, and payee services. Now we have added another: legal aid services.
People who are struggling with keeping a stable job or place to live usually lack access to affordable legal counsel and representation. This is especially true of the most vulnerable such as those who are homeless -- the number one leading cause of which is medical bills -- or at risk of losing their home.
Aspire has entered into a partnership with Indiana Legal Services that includes a full-time attorney dedicated to providing legal support to Aspire clients referred to them. Assistance can include things such as:
- Assist with Advance Directives and other legal healthcare needs
- Landlord/housing disputes
- Accommodations for physical disability or mental illness
- Utility bills/disconnection
- Expungement of criminal record
Jerry Landers, Aspire Vice President of Strategy & Business Development, says that financial/legal difficulties often go hand-in-hand with poor health outcomes. A typical client who might need legal aid services is likely someone working a low-wage job lacking health insurance or paid time off, living paycheck to paycheck. They incur an illness that forces them to stop working, their medical bills pile up, and without a support system they find themselves at risk for poverty and homelessness.
“The access to an attorney impacts the individual's financial wellbeing, which is the biggest indicator of health in the United States. Zip code is the number one indicator of health outcomes because it’s so related to income,” Landers says.
The legal aid services will operate under the supervision of Mike Keevin, Director of Strategic Initiatives, who oversees the Social Determinants of Health team. A patient/client can request a referral to legal aid services from any Aspire provider or staff member to see if they qualify.
These services have launched using Aspire funding but will be covered long-term through eligible federal housing grants. There is no cost to Aspire clients for legal aid services, though they could be responsible for any court-related fees or other costs connected to their legal issue.
Legal assistance through this program exists to address health-harming issues of the client through civil legal processes and cannot be used for bankruptcies, defense of a pending criminal charge, immigration matters or personal injury lawsuits.
