SUCCESS STORIES
ALS successfully ensured insurance coverage and treatment for an HIV-positive woman during her pregnancy and the birth of her child. The woman and her husband, both HIV-positive, had visited their doctor to discuss the possibility of having a baby. The doctor told the couple that it was possible to give birth to an HIV-negative baby, referred them to a clinic at an out-of-network hospital that specializes in that type of pregnancy, and assured them their insurance would pay for treatment there. The couple became pregnant, but when they submitted charges for the out-of-network care, their insurance carrier refused to pay the bills. Through the exhaustive advocacy of an ALS staff attorney, the couple returned to an in-network hospital for the duration of the pregnancy and delivery, this time with the services of a doctor who specialized in this type of high-risk pregnancy. The couple's insurance carrier also agreed to pay for the charges incurred at the referral hospital. The clients ended up having a healthy HIV-negative girl.

The mother of an 11 year-old girl with HIV-disease called ALS for assistance when she discovered a school nurse was openly discussing her daughter's HIV status with school staff. ALS successfully intervened to stop the local school district from disclosing the little girl's HIV status and to expunge her school record of any illegal references to her HIV status.

In another case, ALS assisted a client in recovering $8,700 in unpaid wages and overtime from a former employer. When the client came to ALS, he had worked for over a year without receiving his full wages and overtime pay. He had stopped working because the symptoms of his HIV-disease had worsened significantly. ALS filed a wage and hour claim and through early advocacy successfully settled the case.

ALS successfully helped a client with HIV-disease to self-advocate and secure the return of her full security deposit of over $2,000. The client, who receives a federal Section 8 housing subsidy, and her twin grandchildren rented a house for a year before the landlord evicted them because he wanted to sell the house. The landlord claimed that the client had damaged the house so he could use her security deposit to pay for upgrades to the house in preparation for selling it. When the client came to ALS, an attorney discovered that the landlord had illegally extorted financial payments in addition to her monthly rent. The client had receipts proving extra payments, pictures of the clean house and other supporting evidence. ALS demanded that the landlord fully reimburse the illegal side payments and the security deposit. When the landlord refused, ALS assisted the client.