Fact sheet: Complex care health settings and medical-legal partnerships

Monday, February 11, 2019

By MLPB, National Center for Complex Health and Social Needs, National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership, and PennMedicine Lancaster General Health

Many people with complex health needs confront social needs such as housing instability or homelessness, immigration challenges, criminal system involvement, unlawful disenrollment from federal or state disability benefits, and the absence of paperwork to guide responsible medical decision-making. While these needs have a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of individuals, the health care system is not equipped to address these needs. However, many social needs have legal solutions.

The fourth fact sheet in our population series describes five complex care settings that have integrated medical-legal partnership services into care delivery. It also features data on the ways these partnerships have demonstrated initial success in improving both physical and mental health conditions as well as stabilizing income and housing for patients with complex conditions while also curbing costly overuse of health care services by addressing the root causes of patients’ problems.