The MBA Pro Bono Prescription initiative will host its second
open house of the fall for lawyers from any practice area to learn
how to advocate for low-income, medically vulnerable Massachusetts
residents.
The Boston open house will be hosted by Todd & Weld LLP from
5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 27, at its State Street office in
Boston. A Springfield open house was hosted Sept. 27, with both
co-sponsored by the Massachusetts Bar Association and Medical-Legal
Partnership | Boston, the founding site of the national MLP
Network.
The MBA and the Medical-Legal Partnership Massachusetts network
joined forces earlier this year to create the pioneering
initiative, which brings together volunteer attorneys and medical
professionals to promote the health and well-being of low-income
patients through legal advocacy.
The MBA Pro Bono Prescription program will support patients by
providing direct legal services to them -- services triggered by
referrals from health care teams to the local MLP site. Each local
MLP site, most often housed with a local or regional legal services
organization, will serve as the connector between the health care
team, the volunteer attorney, and the patient.
The MBA's House of Delegates unanimously passed a resolution in
January endorsing MLPs. The MBA's support follows approval from the
American Medical Association, which passed a similar resolution
aimed at the medical profession in June 2010. The American Bar
Association passed a resolution endorsing the expansion of
medical-legal partnerships throughout the legal profession four
years ago.