Integrating Legal Services into North Carolina’s Medicaid Waiver | Case Study
Thursday, July 11, 2024
States are increasingly exploring the use of Medicaid authorities to cover services that address health related social needs. As a result, there is growing interest in utilizing Medicaid funds to facilitate legal aid, especially when provided through medical-legal partnership (MLP).
North Carolina has actually created a pathway to ensure that health-harming legal needs and legal services are not overlooked in its strategies to manage its Medicaid program effectively and efficiently. This case study focuses on North Carolina’s Healthy Opportunities Pilot (HOP) program, one element of North Carolina’s Section 1115 Medicaid demonstration waiver, and how certain legal services for beneficiaries are covered through this program. It also offers key lessons from MLP advocates who helped shape and implement this program.