Thomas Breen File Photo
New Haven Legal Assistance Association’s Shelley White (left) signed the letter to the state alongside three other legal aid organizations.
As low-income workers lose jobs or hours during the coronavirus public health crisis, New Haven legal aid is asking the state to eliminate barriers to those workers getting help, like fears that undocumented family members might get deported after going to the doctor.
New Haven Legal Assistance Association has sent these recommendations to the Connecticut Department of Social Services. Three other legal aid organizations from around the state signed the letter alongside NHLAA.
“We recognize that the above is an extraordinary set of recommendations, but these are extraordinary times,” the organizations wrote.
DSS is updating its policies daily, according to spokesman David Dearborn. The department has taken care of some the concerns in the letter but not all.
The core of many of the legal aid recommendations: it should be easy for residents to sign up for the social services they need, and those already receiving services should get to keep their benefits until the crisis is over.
For example, the letter says that the application for these benefits can be long, with many questions about what applicants own. The organizations ask DSS to simplify that paperwork and take applicants at their word; DSS can factcheck whether people are eligible for Medicaid, etc. after the pandemic is over.
NHLAA and the other organizations also explain specific gaps that make getting treatment risky for undocumented immigrants and those with compromised immune systems, like people living with HIV.
For example, the letter suggests that DSS share no information about whether any patient is a citizen or has a valid visa with Homeland Security and broadcast this policy.
“This public health emergency makes access to health care an imperative for all. People who forego testing or treatment of covid-19, whether due to cost or immigration status or some other reason, pose a threat to us all,” the letter explains.
The letter focuses on ways to make sure the elderly and people with compromised immune systems can get help safely, like making sure they can get individual rides to doctor’s appointments without sharing a car with other patients or needing to take the bus.
DSS has begun removing cost barriers for those on the state Medicaid program HUSKY in response to the coronavirus outbreak in the state. The program now covers testing and treatment for covid-19 without families having to pay copays for the visit. The state is covering telehealth more, so doctors can provide help over the phone to those in the program. DSS has also removed work requirements for those receiving food assistance through SNAP, among other changes.
DSS is providing updates on its response to the epidemic on its website.
