Legal help inside primary care for medically underserved Latinx and migrant communities
Addressing durable health disparities through critical time legal interventions in medically underserved Latinx and migrant communities in the United States.
This project adds free legal services into primary care clinics to help Latinx and migrant patients with problems like insurance, housing, and work issues that affect their health.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | State University New York Stony Brook NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Stony Brook, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11368452 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Partnering universities and six federally qualified health centers will screen patients for legal needs during primary care visits and connect them with on-site or linked lawyers and advocates. The team will track health care access and clinical outcomes for conditions such as HIV, diabetes, hypertension, and COVID-19 while also measuring how well legal services can be adopted in routine clinic workflows. Researchers will compare outcomes and implementation results across clinics that receive integrated legal support and those that do not. The project focuses on medically underserved Latinx and migrant populations and includes partner sites in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are Latinx and migrant adults who get care at the participating federally qualified health centers and who face legal barriers to care such as lack of insurance, unsafe housing, or employment issues.
Not a fit: Patients who do not attend the participating clinics or whose health problems are unrelated to legal or social barriers may not see direct benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, integrating legal services into clinics could reduce barriers to care, improve control of chronic and infectious diseases, and lower health disparities for Latinx and migrant patients.
How similar studies have performed: Medical-legal partnerships have shown promise in resolving social needs and improving care access, but their effects on clinical outcomes in underserved Latinx and migrant populations remain less tested.
Where this research is happening
Stony Brook, United States
- State University New York Stony Brook — Stony Brook, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Munoz-Laboy, Miguel a — State University New York Stony Brook
- Study coordinator: Munoz-Laboy, Miguel a
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.