February 25, 2021 by Natalie Cochran
FACES OF EVICTION AND HEALTH CARE: Family Illegally Locked out of Home and in Need for Health Benefits
Gregory, a Houston father, contracted COVID-19 and then his family’s life took a turn for the worst. Gregory lost his job due to contracting the virus, his landlord illegally locked the entire family of their home for not being able to come up with enough money to pay the rent, and they had no medical coverage.
Gregory could not work due to being sick and having to quarantine for two weeks. Since he was unable to work, his job let him go. Not being able to provide an income, Gregory did not have enough money to pay for his daughter’s medical costs or even buy food for his family.
Gregory originally contacted the Central Intake Unit (CIU) at LSLA for assistance with an application for Medicaid and SNAP benefits for his daughter. During the process of assisting the client’s family with applying for benefits, they also sought assistance with the unlawful lock out by their landlord from their apartment. Cristina, a paralegal for LSLA in Connecting Texas Kids to Coverage Unit, worked with the Housing Unit so that together they can deliver a signed CDC Declaration to the client’s landlord to halt any attempt of eviction.
The CDC Declaration is for tenants, lessees, or residents of residential properties who are covered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Order to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 virus.
LSLA got the tenants back into their home, protected them from eviction, and assisted with enrollment for Medcaid and SNAP benefits so that they can purchase food and cover health care costs.
*Names have been changed to protect the identity of the client
