Benefits Expedited for Over 9,000 Maryland Medicaid Applicants

-Posted May 2013

Over 9,000 people with disabilities who have been waiting far too long to hear whether they will get Medicaid should now get a prompt decision as the result of an agreement signed on April 25, 2013. Maryland also agreed to process all other applications for Medicaid on the basis of disability as promptly as required by federal law and regulations. NCLEJ, the Public Justice Center, and the Homeless Persons Representation Project sued the State of Maryland over these extreme delays in January 2013. Read Baltimore Sun article and press release.

 

NCLEJ's May 29th Awards Dinner to Honor Marc Lawrence-Apfelbaum, Nan Aron and Neal Katyal

-Posted April 2013

Click image for full invitation

 

Settlement Secures Continuing Benefits for Thousands of New York City Recipients Awaiting Hearing Decisions

-Posted April 2013

Thousands of low-income New York City families had been going without desperately needed assistance while they waited for fair hearings to challenge unlawful terminations of cash assistance and food stamps. After this case was filed, the United States District Court in New York signed a preliminary injunction that assured that aid would be uninterrupted. On April 2, 2013, the Court approved final settlement requiring the State to timely and electronically communicate aid continuing directives to the City and for the City to timely implement the directives. NCLEJ, Legal Aid Society, and New York Legal Assistance group were co-counsel. Read more

 

New Yorkers Living with HIV/AIDS Secure Critical Class Action Settlement

-Posted April 2013

On April 3, 2013, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York approved the class action settlement between recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) living in New York City who are HIV-positive or living with AIDS and the City of New York. The case specifically challenged the City’s unlawful recovery of federal housing benefits provided to class members via the federal Housing Opportunities for People Living With AIDS (HOPWA) program. Prior to the settlement, the City mailed payments of nearly $800,000 to 264 class members. NCLEJ, the HIV Law Project, and African Services Committee, were co-counsel. Read more

 

Neal Katyal Joins Slate of May 29th Dinner Honorees

-Posted March 2013

Former Acting Solicitor General of the United States, Neal Katyal, has joined the list of honorees for NCLEJ's May 29, 2013 dinner, along with Marc Lawrence-Apfelbaum of Time Warner Cable and Nan Aron of the Alliance for Justice. Neal is a partner in the Washington, DC, office of Hogan Lovells and is the Paul and Patricia Saunders Professor of Law at Georgetown University. Read more about the dinner

 

 

Child Care Settlement Approved in Suffolk County, New York

-Posted March 2013

On March 18, 2013, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York approved the class action settlement entered into between low-income working parents, represented by the National Center for Law and Economic Justice and Empire Justice Center, and the Commissioner of the Suffolk County Department of Social Services. The settlement followed the Court's July 26, 2012 decision holding that the County's June 2012 child care termination notices, stating only that the county had insufficient funds and that the parent's income exceeded the new eligibility standard, violated the recipients’ due process right to adequate notice. Read more

 

NY City and State Agencies Sued for Failing to Provide Accessible Information

-Posted March 2013

NCLEJ and Drinker, Biddle & Reath filed a lawsuit on behalf of 4,000 blind and seriously visually impaired New Yorkers who cannot read the standard print applications, notices and other materials provided to them about their food stamp and Medicaid benefits. We asked the court to order the City and State agencies to provide information in alternative formats appropriate to each person (including Braille, large print, audio cassette or CD, and email or CD that can be read on a computer with screen reader software), develop a system to identify people who may need materials in alternative formats, and inform them of their right to such materials.

Read more

 

Judge Ciparick Elected to NCLEJ’s Board

-Posted March 2013

At its March 8th meeting, NCLEJ’s Board of Directors elected Judge Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick to serve as a Board member. Judge Ciparick, now of counsel to Greenberg Traurig, LLP, recently retired after serving for 19 years as an Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals of the State of New York. In announcing her appointment, Executive Director Henry Freedman called her "a thoughtful and inspiring jurist [and] a proponent of effective civil legal services." Read more

 

 

Persistent Nassau County (NY) Delays Lead to Motion for Contempt

-Posted March 2013

NCLEJ and the Empire Justice Center have moved in federal court for contempt, enforcement of the Court's Order, and appointment of a special master to address the persistent delays in processing applications for vitally necessary food stamps, Medicaid, and cash assistance. These problems have continued despite Nassau County’s agreement to a consent decree requiring compliance with federal and state time limits. Read more

 

Maryland Sued for Delaying Medical Benefits to Impoverished Adults with Disabilities

-Posted January 2013

NCLEJ, the Public Justice Center, and the Homeless Persons Representation Project have filed a state court lawsuit, Magee-Kern v. Dallas, on behalf of a class of the thousands of adult applicants each month who apply for Medicaid benefits on the basis of their very low income and severe disability and who face serious and often life-threatening health risks because of the unlawful delays in processing those applications. Read More

 

NCLEJ Participates in Ford Foundation Roundtable

-Posted January 2013

Gina Mannix participated in a two-day Women's Rights Legal Roundtable convened by the Ford Foundation in mid-January. The Roundtable brought together a small group of leading scholars, activists and legal practitioners to discuss innovative and compelling ways to use legal strategies to advance economic justice opportunities for low-income women and women of color. We were pleased to participate in this provocative and timely conversation and look forward to continuing the dialogue started at the Roundtable.

 

Federal Court Determines Connecticut Must Speed Processing of SNAP (Food Stamp) Benefits

-Posted December 2012

Thousands of low-income Connecticut families have had to wait months before getting the food stamps they urgently needed to feed themselves and their families. On December 4, 2012, the federal District Court said this persistent systemic delay "undeniably constitutes irreparable
harm" and granted plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction. To make the problem crystal clear, media reports now reveal that 125 boxes of unprocessed applications were found in one regional office. NCLEJ and Greater Hartford Legal Aid are co-counsel in this case. Read More

 

Marc Cohan and Gina Mannix's Article on NCLEJ's SNAP (Food Stamp) Application Delay Litigation Project Is Published in Clearinghouse Review

-Posted October 2012

Find the article here (pdf).

Jenny Pelaez Begins Service as the First Paul M. Dodyk Fellow

-Posted October 2012

 

 

 

Paul Dodyk with Jenny Pelaez

 

 

 

Jenny Pelaez, a 2011 honors graduate of Cardozo Law School and federal court clerk, has begun her service as the first Paul M. Dodyk Fellow for Economic Justice. The Fellowship, which was created by generous donors to NCLEJ, honors Paul's lifetime commitment to using the law to promote economic justice. "On behalf of the entire board, I would like to express how honored we are to have such a accomplished woman, and such a promising young lawyer as Jenny, become our first Dodyk Fellow. It is precisely the tribute to Paul we hoped for," said Jennifer Selendy, NCLEJ Board Chair.

 

NCLEJ and Partners See Significant Improvement in Benefit Application Processing in Steuben County

-Posted October 2012

For the past two and a half years, low-income Steuben County residents almost always received timely determinations on their applications for food stamps, Medicaid, and/or cash public assistance as the result of the Court approved settlement in a lawsuit filed by NCLEJ and its partners. In October 2012, the Court's jurisdiction came to an end. NCLEJ will continue to monitor the County's performance to ensure that needy Steuben County families' applications are processed timely in accordance with the law. Read More

 

Three Community Leaders Join NCLEJ's Board of Directors

-Posted September 2012

Mary E. Gerisch, Melissa Gilbarg, and Ofelia Zapata were all elected to NCLEJ’s Board of Directors at its September meeting.  A retired human rights attorney of Lakota heritage, Mary chairs the Policy Committee at the Vermont Workers Center.  While pursuing her Masters in Social Work, Melissa directs the Coalition Against Poverty, a grassroots group based in southeastern Massachusetts.  A dedicated and effective community organizer, Ofelia has served on the Texas Clients Council since 1994 and as Vice President for the past two years.

“We are fortunate to have three such talented and committed community representatives join our Board of Directors as we seek to ensure that government agencies respond to the enormous needs of low-income families,” said NCLEJ Executive Director Henry A. Freedman in announcing the appointments. 

 

St. Louis Post-Dispatch Editorial Praises Results NCLEJ Seeks on Behalf of Kidney Dialysis Patients

-Posted September 2012

Earlier this year, NCLEJ and colleagues challenged a new Missouri policy that requires Medicaid recipients to move from their homes into nursing homes to get necessary kidney dialysis treatment. According to the editorial, at least 14 Missourians have now had to move into nursing homes to be kept alive, taxpayers are having to pay more for their care, and the lawsuit sets out “real solutions based on how other states keep dialysis patients in their communities.”

Read more

 

NCLEJ and Empire Justice Center Win Court Order Restoring Child Care Benefits to Low-Income Working Families

-Posted July 2012

On July 26, 2012, a federal court in Torres v. Blass ordered New York's Suffolk County Department of Social Services to immediately restore child care benefits to low-wage working families whose child care ended earlier this month when new eligibility limits were imposed. Read more

 

Check Out NCLEJ's Summer Newsletter

-Posted July 2012

Read more about our recent cases and other exciting NCLEJ news, made possible by the support of our donors.

 

NCLEJ Dinner on June 5th Celebrated Four Outstanding Honorees

-Posted June 2012

 

 

 

Left to right: Jeffrey Toobin, Robert Greenstein, Steven Reiss, Michele Coleman Mayes, and Henry Freedman

 

 

 

 

Allstate General Counsel Michele Coleman Mayes, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities President Robert Greenstein, and the law firm of Weil, Gotshal & Manges were honored at NCLEJ's awards dinner on June 5 at Chelsea Piers in New York City. Steven Reiss accepted the Pro Bono Leadership Award on behalf of Weil, Gotshal & Manges, and writer and legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin served as the evening's Master of Ceremonies. Through this annual event, NCLEJ recognizes the accomplishments of worthy individuals and organizations such as those honored this year, while raising much needed funds to support our programs. To read about past dinners, click here.

 

NCLEJ and Other Advocates Sue Missouri for Medicaid Change that Would Cause Unnecessary Institutionalization of Dialysis Patients

-Posted June 2012

NCLEJ, Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, the Saint Louis Legal Clinic, Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, and two private attorneys have filed a federal lawsuit, Talton v. Kinkade, to challenge a new Medicaid policy that will cause Medicaid recipients who live in the community to move to nursing homes to continue necessary kidney dialysis treatment. Plaintiffs are five Medicaid dialysis patients who will lose transportation to dialysis under the new policy and a grassroots disability rights organization. The lawsuit has claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Read more

 

June 5 Dinner to Honor Sebelius, Mayes, Greenstein, and Weil, Gotshal & Manges

-Posted April 2012

The law firm of Weil, Gotshal & Manges will receive the Pro Bono Leadership Award at NCLEJ's June 5 dinner, completing the slate of honorees that also includes HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Allstate's General Counsel Michele Coleman Mayes, and the Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities' President Robert Greenstein. NCLEJ's Executive Director Henry Freedman said, "Weil's outstanding pro bono representation has made a huge difference to our clients. I feel
so fortunate this year to have four honorees who have done so much to improve the lives of so many who would otherwise have been excluded from our society." Read more

 

Kathleen Sebelius Joins Slate of June 5 Dinner Honorees

-Posted March 2012

United States Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has has joined the list of honorees for NCLEJ's June 5, 2012, dinner along with Michele Coleman Mayes of Allstate and Robert Greenstein of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Henry Freedman, NCLEJ Executive Director, said "We are thrilled to have this opportunity to thank Secretary Sebelius for her leadership on issues so profoundly affecting the low-income families and individuals we serve." Read more

 

NCLEJ and Greater Hartford Legal Aid Sue State For Delays in Providing Food Stamps

-Posted March 2012

NCLEJ and Greater Hartford Legal Aid have filed a federal class action challenging the state's pervasive delays in providing food stamps to needy Connecticut residents. The delays affect thousands of individuals each month, depriving them of food stamps they need to put food on the table. The case, Briggs v. Bremby, was filed on March 5, 2012. Plaintiffs' counsel are Marc Cohan and Gina Mannix of NCLEJ and Lucy Potter, Greg Bass, and Cecil Thomas of Greater Hartford Legal Aid.

 

NCLEJ Joins Supreme Court Amicus Brief Supporting the Affordable Care Act

-Posted March 2012

NCLEJ has joined the National Health Law Program (NHeLP) and 38 prominent organizations of health care providers, consumers, and local health officials from around the country in an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court supporting the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion. Read more

 

Willkie Farr Partner Elected to NCLEJ's Board of Directors

-Posted March 2012

New York City attorney Keila Ravelo, a partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP and a 1991 graduate of Columbia Law School, was elected to NCLEJ’s Board of Directors at the March 2012 meeting.

“We are so pleased that Ms. Ravelo has joined our dedicated Board of Directors to help us in our ongoing efforts to ensure that government agencies respond effectively to the critical needs of low-income families,” said NCLEJ Executive Director Henry Freedman in announcing Ms. Ravelo's election to the Board.

 

NCLEJ Files Contempt Motion to Address Suffolk County’s Failure to Provide Promised Food and Medicaid Promptly

-Posted February 2012

As reported in Newsday, NCLEJ and the Empire Justice Center have filed a contempt motion in federal court on behalf of low-income Suffolk County families hit hard by the recession whose benefits applications are being processed far more slowly than the agency had promised in a 2009 court-approved settlement. Read more

 

NCLEJ's June 5 Awards Dinner to Honor Mayes and Greenstein

-Posted February 2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NCLEJ's annual benefit awards dinner will be held on June 5, 2012, at Chelsea Piers in New York City. Honorees will include Michele Mayes of Allstate and Bob Greenstein of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, with Jeffrey Toobin serving as emcee. Read more

 

Welcome to Our First Pickering Fellow!

-Posted February 2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Left to right: Henry Freedman, Clarion Johnson

We are thrilled that Clarion Johnson, a senior associate at WilmerHale, has started a six-month, full-time Pickering Fellowship at NCLEJ, and we thank our Board member Doug Curtis who helped make NCLEJ one of two New York City organizations eligible as a placement for Pickering Fellows. Read more

 

Federal Court Orders Hawaii to Speed Processing of SNAP (Food Stamp) Benefits

-Posted January 2012

Thousands of low-income Hawaiians will be able to feed themselves and their families more quickly as the result of the federal District Court's January 23, 2012, preliminary injunction order. The state agency is ordered to improve its performance in processing SNAP applications during the course of the year. NCLEJ is co-counsel with Hawaii Appleseed Center for Law and Economic Justice and Alston Hunt Floyd & Ing. Read more

 

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