Legal Assistance For Seniors Inc

Programs: Legal assistance - legal assistance for seniors (las) has been advocating for alameda county seniors for over 37 years. We provide free legal services, including representation in court and administrative hearings. Our practice areas include elder abuse, public benefits, guardianships of minor children, naturalization and public benefits for immigrants, and health law. We are also court appointed to represent proposed conservatees. We make home visits to our clients who, because of their health or economic situations can not come to our office. Last year, our attorneys and advocates provided legal services to 1,335 seniors.

health insurance counseling and advocacy program - the alameda county hicap of legal assistance for seniors provides individual counseling, advocacy and community education on medicare, medi-cal, supplemental options, medicare advantage and prescription drug plans, long term care insurance, as well as screening and application assistance for low income programs. The hicap department provides these services through four paid staff persons and 35 trained and state-registered volunteer counselors at over 30 counseling sites throughout the county. Hicap targets its services to people on medicare of any age, their families and caregivers, as well as pre-retirees. Complex issues are referred to the legal department for assessment and follow-up. In fy 2012-13, hicap counseled 1,944 individual clients and recorded 13,588 separate contacts with these clients. Staff and volunteers contributed 4,218 counseling hours and volunteers contributed an additional 2,514 hours of training and travel time. 122 clients were referred to the legal department.

community education and outreach - legal assistance for seniors provides group education presentations and agency representation at community events such as health and senior fairs. Legal presentations topics include consumer protection, elder abuse prevention, guardianship, and public benefits. In fy 2012-13, the legal department provided 221 presentations, reaching 13,214 people. Hicap presentation topics include medicare coverage and rights, options for supplementing medicare, low income assistance progams for health care, medicare and consumer fraud and abuse, and long term care insurance. In fy 2012-13, hicap participated in 198 community education events, reaching 12,105 attendees. One full time staff person schedules and coordinates all the events and delivers the majority of educational presentations and trainings in the community. Other staff and certain legal and hicap volunteers are also community educators.