Learning Lab

Access to Justice for Veterans: Insights and Updates from the Veterans Affairs (VA) Legal Services for Veterans (LSV) Program

The Veterans Health Administration's (VHA) annual Community Homeless Assessment, Local Education, and Networking Groups (CHALENG) Survey consistently identifies legal assistance as a top unmet need for homeless Veterans. Moreover, the 2023 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report highlights that justice-involved Veterans and Veterans experiencing housing instability are heavily impacted groups. This presentation offers a comprehensive overview of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) Legal Services for Veterans Program, designed to inform and engage legal aid professionals. Participants will gain a clear understanding of the key components and benefits of VA Medical-Legal Partnerships (MLP) and how these partnerships can significantly improve Veterans' overall health and well-being. The session will also explain the newly authorized VA Legal Services for Homeless Veterans and Veterans At-Risk for Homelessness (LSV-H) grant program. Attendees will learn how this funding can address legal issues that create barriers to stable housing for Veterans. Lastly, our expert presenters will facilitate a discussion on best practices for collaboration between the VA and legal service providers. This includes exploring future funding opportunities and developing strategies for sustainable partnerships.

  • Assess the legal needs of homeless and at-risk Veterans to prioritize services effectively.
  • Utilize the VA's Legal Services for Veterans Program and Medical-Legal Partnerships to improve Veterans' health and well-being.
  • Implement best practices for collaborating with the VA and other legal aid organizations to enhance service delivery.
  • Leverage funding opportunities to develop and sustain comprehensive legal services for Veterans.

Bethany Hamilton

Bethany Hamilton, JD bhamilton1@email.gwu.edu Bethany Hamilton is the co-Director of the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership (NCMLP) at the Milken Institute School of Public Health. Hamilton has spent her career working at the intersection of health equity and social justice. She most recently served as Deputy Director, State Affairs at the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC), where she led projects focused on expanding Medicaid, defending the Affordable Care Act, and strengthening the ability of community health centers to carry out their mission. She advanced health care workforce development initiatives as part of NACHC’s Community HealthCorps Program, and began her career as an Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellow at Legal Assistance of Western NY, where she built a re-entry law clinic and co-managed a law student summer associate program. As a former member of NCMLP’s Advisory Council from 2014-2019, she served as a bridge between the two sectors and was part of the team that oversaw NCMLP’s transition to become a federally-funded technical assistance hub for health centers. Hamilton has worked in every policy environment across the country – from local to federal, red to blue, rural to urban. She has a unique understanding of healthcare and legal services operations, and the challenges and opportunities inherent in each. She sees medical-legal partnership and NCMLP as a vehicle to help dismantle the systemic inequities that have hindered our progress as a country and threaten to further divide us. Hamilton is dedicated to leveraging her knowledge, leadership, and savvy to accelerate opportunities to improve the systems and policies that most affect health and well-being. Hamilton earned her Bachelor’s Degree at the University of Miami and a Juris Doctor with a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Health Law and Policy from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Madolyn Gingell, LCSW

National Coordinator, VA Legal Services for Veterans

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

To be added

Kristin Nelson Verrill, JD

Managing Attorney, Veterans Law Project

Atlanta Legal Aid Society, Inc.

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