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In honor of World Mental Health Day and Mental Illness Awareness Week, this month we're spotlighting our Health program. Our attorneys and advocates represent patients at psychiatric hospitals and inpatient facilities in over 4,000 hearings each year. By representing patients, we ensure that their legal rights and dignity are respected. Our Health program also works with people living with mental and physical health disabilities when they've been discriminated against or denied access to the employment benefits, health insurance, or other assistance they need for basic necessities like food, medicine, and housing.
Access to Basic Needs
Everyone deserves access to basic necessities for their well-being. Tuan* came to the Law Foundation for help with his appeal for disability-based Supplemental Security Income (SSI) to cover basic living expenses. Tuan had experienced severe trauma and was incarcerated for much of his adult life. We helped arrange neuropsychological testing to show the degree of his cognitive impairments. Our attorney helped him navigate the complicated Social Security system and rules. Although Tuan's immigration status made him ineligible for SSI, he qualified for California's Cash Assistance for Immigrants (CAPI) program, which provides support to certain legal noncitizens who are seniors or live with a disability. We assisted Tuan with applying for CAPI, including the neuropsychological testing report from Valley Homeless HealthCare Program. With our help, his application was approved. He is now receiving an ongoing monthly support of $675 and he also received $1,325 in backpay.
*Name has been changed.
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Public Change Rule Threatens Immigrant Families
At the Law Foundation, we believe access to food, medicine, and other basic needs are critical to maintaining the well-being of our community. The Department of Homeland Security's finalized
"public charge" undermines our vision for healthier, more stable families. This rule is used by immigration officials to decide whether a person can enter the U.S. or get a green card. With the new changes, the government will heavily consider factors like health, age, income, skills (including English language skills) and use of public programs such as Medicaid or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps. Families of color, who disproportionately experience poverty, will be impacted most. This means families, like our clients, are choosing to go without these basic necessities because of the threat that it will impact their immigration status.
In August, Santa Clara County, along with the City and County of San Francisco, filed a lawsuit challenging the new rule. We're proud that our county is fighting this racially-motivated "wealth test" that discriminates against immigrants and their families based on income. The finalized rule will take effect on October 15. Click here to learn more about the impacts to immigrants and families. Read more.
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Senior Attorney Kelly Rodriguez
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Dignity and Respect for All People As a Patients' Rights Advocate and Senior Attorney, Kelly Rodriguez ensures patients held on involuntary holds in psychiatric facilities has access to justice. She is part of the Patients' Rights Unit of the Law Foundation, which is designated to represent these patients in Santa Clara County. When patients are on 14-day holds, are hospitalized against their will, or medicated without their consent, attorneys like Kelly ensure that patients are respected and treated with dignity. Patients have the legal right to request a hearing to refuse medication or their hospitalization. Kelly was instrumental in establishing county policy and procedures to protect minor's consent rights regarding medication. This is just one example of how our advocacy and work makes long-term changes in the mental health care system. She leads our outreach efforts in the minor's unit at San Jose Behavioral Health (SJBH) hospital, advises minors of the rights, and assists patients and families with their concerns. Kelly also worked closely with SJBH hospital when it first opened its doors in 2016 and provided training, intensive monitoring, and technical assistance to protect patients' due process rights. "The most fulfilling part of my job is seeing our clients overcome hardships and move on from a traumatic situation of being hospitalized against their will and possibly having a mental health crisis to seeing them resume their lives, get married, have kids, get jobs, and reintegrate into society," Kelly said.
Join Us for Lunch at LACY Honors 2019
Join more than 300 business, legal, and community leaders and show your support for the Law Foundation's Children & Youth program, which provides free legal services to children and youth facing serious issues like physical and sexual abuse, entry into the foster care system, and homelessness.
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Best Practices for Representing Clients with Mental Health Disabilities
Law Foundation attorney Becky Moskowitz presented last month at a national conference hosted by the National Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives, a specialized bar association for attorneys who represent Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income clients. She presented on the ethics and best practices for working with clients living with mental health disabilities.
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Protecting Foster Youth's Financial Future - An Advocate's Guide
"Identity theft is a widespread crime that does not discriminate. It even impacts children. In fact, children in general are estimated to be 35 times more likely to be victims of identity theft than adults. Foster youth are even more vulnerable to identity theft because of their involvement in the juvenile dependency system." Read more.
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Anti-Displacement Study Session & Upcoming Housing Rights Workshops
Directing Attorney Nadia Aziz spoke on a panel at San Jose's Anti-Displacement Study Session at City Hall. Read the media coverage here and here.Plus, our Housing program is hosting ongoing workshops in Gilroy and San Jose to inform community members about their legal rights and answer questions. It's critical that we reach residents in their own neighborhoods to increase access to justice.
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Celebrating 30 Years of the Ryan White CARE Act
Thank you to everyone who joined our celebration of the 30th year of the Ryan White CARE Act. Special thank you to Ryan White's mother, Jeanne White-Ginder, for discussing her experience at the very beginning of the HIV epidemic, and her and Ryan's roles in the passage of the Ryan White CARE Act. Thank you to The Health Trust for sponsoring this event! Photos & Read more.
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Name and Gender Marker Document Change Clinic
Identity documents are an important part of daily life-working, voting, traveling, accessing government institutions, and proving who you are. It's important to have identity documents that include a legal name and gender marker that accurately reflects your gender identity. For members of the transgender community, having an ID that reflects gender presentation is especially helpful when gender is questioned by the government or businesses, or when activities are sex-segregated.
The process of updating identity can be confusing and overwhelming. To meet this community need, the Law Foundation held a Gender Marker and Name Change pro bono clinic on September 10. Volunteers from Cooley, DLA Piper, Morgan Lewis, Latham & Watkins, Kirkland & Ellis, and LinkedIn interviewed and assisted 14 clients seeking to obtain court-ordered name and gender marker changes.
After receiving MCLE training from Law Foundation attorney, Becky Moskowitz, and the Santa Clara County Office of LGBTQ Affairs, the pro bono volunteers helped clients fill out forms to petition the court for a name and gender marker change. Most clients also requested court fee waivers. The volunteers then discussed options with clients about changing name and gender markers on driver's licenses, passports, Social Security cards, and other government-issued IDs, which clients can do after they receive the court order. The Law Foundation filed the documents at Court the following day.
The clients were initially nervous when they arrived at the clinic. As they were introduced to the volunteers and received assistance, they were visibly happy to have this critical step in their transition completed. The clinic was such a success that we're hosting another one in November!
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Support the Law Foundation through your DAF (Donor Advised Fund)
A Donor Advised Fund, or DAF, is like a personal charitable investment account. A DAF allows investors to create a fund at a public charity, like Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable, or the Silicon Valley Community Foundation. The gifts are generally immediately tax deductible, invested for long-term growth, and then used to recommend grants to qualified nonprofits, like the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley.
Recently, the Law Foundation was highlighted in the launch of the Silicon Valley Give List, a curated and vetted list of effective nonprofits addressing pressing community issues. This list is a unique partnership between Magnify Community, Fidelity Charitable, and the Sobrato Family Foundation and promotes giving accounts through Fidelity Charitable, such as Donor Advised Funds. We are honored and excited to be part of this list.
Please contact Kelley Stupfel Conway, Director of Development at [email protected] or (408) 280-2433 if you need more information about supporting the Law Foundation by making a gift from your DAF, transferring stock, estate or legacy gifts, or other support.
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Thank You 2019 Platinum Partners!
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