Lisa Allen 2021-01-22 06:33:28
Of Cancer, COVID, and You: Lawyers Can Make a Huge Difference in Tough Times
Cancer. It is a devastating diagnosis. For people who are one or two paychecks from financial disaster, a cancer diagnosis can be the catalyst for a blur of escalating trouble. “Chemo-brain” and exhaustion make working more difficult. Reduced income can mean housing instability and food insecurity. Lost jobs impact health insurance coverage at a time when it is most vital. Medical bills mount, applications for disability are slow to be approved, relationships get strained, and running underneath it all is an uncomfortable awareness that this disease might be fatal.
Can you imagine the stress of cancer during the COVID pandemic? Imagine going into a hospital for daily radiation or biweekly chemotherapy infusions now. Hospitals are scarier than ever, with visitors limited or prohibited, employees in full PPE doing symptom screening at every door. Supportive counseling groups are remote or suspended. At home, imagine helping your children with virtual school while fighting nausea from chemotherapy. Imagine your employer is fighting to stay afloat during the pandemic and wants you back in the office. How do you balance a compromised immune system with the need to keep your job? While we all find the pandemic challenging, for cancer patients, it is significantly more so.
These patients need excellent medical care, but medical care isn’t enough. Sometimes the patients’ biggest worries are those a lawyer can address. CancerLINC, a small, Richmond-based nonprofit organization, has been providing legal assistance to cancer patients for more than 24 years. We connect cancer patients to our network of pro bono financial planners and attorneys for help with a wide range of matters.
During this pandemic, CancerLINC’s phones have been ringing. Our clients still need estate planning services. For those who meet established financial guidelines, we reach out to our network of volunteers and find them a pro bono attorney; those who exceed our guidelines get contact information for three attorneys who, for a fee, can help. We are grateful that many of these attorneys have been willing to meet clients in hospitals when necessary. We have gotten more requests than ever for help from financial planners, as clients make choices between competing priorities for scarce dollars. Social security disability applications proceed at a glacial pace, and people who get denied benefits need the help of attorneys — appeals need to be filed promptly, but the time before a hearing may be long. Volunteer attorneys who can help these clients are especially valuable during this pandemic. Tenants still need attorneys to encourage needed repairs. Lawyers who can help a client navigate private insurance denials of benefits are in demand, too.
The biggest challenge lately has been in the field of employment law. We have recently seen clients who have been fired at the end of short-term disability leave, without being given the option to return to work. One client was told by Virginia unemployment to apply in North Carolina, North Carolina told him to apply in Virginia. He was too sick to be the ping pong ball between the states and needed an advocate. We have clients who are afraid to ask for accommodations for their protection. We have clients who have been fired after many years of excellent evaluations, who wonder what their options are. While Virginia employers have wide berth to terminate employees, often a simple inquiry from a lawyer can tip the scales in the employee’s favor and enable him to continue working. Sometimes, an employment lawyer can only explain to the cancer patient what his options are and help him select the best course of action. Our clients are grateful for the advice.
Right now, employment attorneys are slamming busy, but we desperately need your help. Insurance attorneys, public benefits attorneys, estate planners, elder law, and housing experts, you are all busy now. This may seem like a difficult time to take on pro bono cases, but I assure you, the neediest clients are feeling the pressure like never before. Time you spend in your own field, in your comfort zone, helping clients who are too sick and too overwhelmed to advocate for themselves is deeply appreciated.
When we help these patients, we are helping the grandmother, the grocery clerk, the hairdresser or the child’s coach with cancer. Are you willing to help them? In honor of the people you know who have fought cancer, can you pick up a pro bono case?
Contact clientservices@cancerlinc.org about becoming one of our volunteer attorneys, or to connect a cancer patient you know with our services.
Lisa Allen, is the client services attorney for CancerLINC. She can be reached at Lisa.Allen@cancerlinc.org.
Published by Virginia State Bar. View All Articles.
This page can be found at http://virginialawyer.vsb.org/article/Access+To+Legal+Services/3863398/690953/article.html.