The Opportunity

Health Law Advocates (HLA) is a non-profit, public interest law firm committed to ensuring universal access to quality health care in Massachusetts. HLA seeks a Staff Attorney to play a key role as a member of our General Legal Practice (GLP) team.

The Staff Attorney will advance HLA's critical mission by providing legal representation to income-eligible clients, advocating for policy reforms, and engaging in community outreach. This position is a unique opportunity for a lawyer dedicated to the public interest to join a team at the forefront of the movement to achieve health equity through the law.

The ideal candidate will have a demonstrated commitment to public interest law and, preferably, experience representing clients facing challenges accessing health care or other professional experience with the health care system. They will thrive providing individualized representation to high-need clients as well as pursuing health system reforms and educating members of the public.

Our General Legal Practice (GLP) team specializes in addressing health care barriers caused by health insurance and medical billing practices, but is entrepreneurial and consistently seeks out new opportunities for impact. Our GLP team devotes particular attention to the health care problems faced by immigrants, trans and gender diverse people, and patients with long-term care needs. A top priority for all of HLA is pursuing racial and ethnic equity in health care.

Duties and Responsibilities

Represent/advise income-qualified clients who primarily rely on state-sponsored health insurance to access health care (70%).

Advocate for policies that remove barriers to care or coverage with government leaders at the Office of Medicaid, Health Connector, other relevant public agencies, and state legislators (20%).

Conduct outreach to consumers and advocacy groups, including via trainings and presentations (5%).

Participate in HLA efforts to improve our organization's internal and external practices and procedures, such as through our diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work (4%).

Assist with drafting/reviewing grant applications and reports or portions thereof (sporadic) (1%).

More specific activities include:

• Connecting with clients and, where relevant, their families, social services providers, and medical providers
• Conducting legal research and writing
• Analyzing medical, health insurance, and other relevant records
• Developing and maintaining strong working relationships with advocacy partners
• Developing and maintaining strong working relationships with MassHealth, The Health Connector, and managed care plans
• Managing case files and documenting all activities in our case management software
• Promoting HLA in the community

GLP Staff Attorney Qualifications

All HLA employees are expected to have the skills to:

• Work both independently and as an effective team member
• Collaborate with and support staff at all levels of our organization
• Communicate clearly and professionally
• Maintain confidentiality and, for attorneys, strict adherence to all professional responsibility requirements for the practice of law
• Demonstrate intellectual curiosity and openness, with the desire and ability to listen and learn
• Understand and believe in the mission of the organization
• Embody the values of the organization, including a commitment to decreasing inequity in our health care system and society as a whole

Minimum requirements specific to this position include:

• Juris Doctor degree and license to practice law in Massachusetts
• 4+ years of relevant work experience
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Strong advocacy skills

Other preferred qualifications:

• Experience working in direct legal services
• Experience working with individuals in crisis
• Proven ability to handle a substantial caseload
• Knowledge of and experience working with state and federal health care coverage and consumer protection laws, particularly Medicaid/MassHealth, the Affordable Care Act and M.G.L. c. 93A
• Experience counseling or representing consumers on health insurance coverage issues;
• Public policy development or policy advocacy experience, preferably relating to health care policy
• Demonstrated ability to supervise and foster growth in junior staff
• Demonstrated cultural competence
• Bilingual proficiency, specifically in Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, and/or Cape Verdean Creole

Please see the full job description for further details.