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TESTIMONY

McGregor Smyth, Executive Director, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest on Immigrant Health Initiatives and Legal Services

4:25:34

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McGregor Smyth highlights the critical role of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest in providing legal and medical assistance to underserved New Yorkers.

Smyth thanks the council for supporting legal services that assist New Yorkers, including the immigrant health initiative.
The organization is part of the New York City Council's immigrant health initiative, which has saved lives and improved healthcare.
Smyth shares a success story of Ms. G, an undocumented and uninsured client, who received a kidney transplant through their assistance.
He calls for enhanced support and funding fairness for the essential work they do.

McGregor Smyth

4:25:34

Afternoon.

4:25:35

My name is Gregor Smythe, and I'm the executive director of New York lawyers for the public interest.

4:25:40

I just wanted to open by thanking deputy speaker Ayala and this committee and the council for really being a champion for the critical legal services civil legal services in particular for New Yorkers in need, including Nobis, which combines law organizing and the power of pro bono legal services as well as medical services to help New Yorkers achieve justice.

4:26:06

We are a proud part of the New York City Council's immigrant health initiative, which serves both recent migrants as well as as immigrant communities across the city.

4:26:17

And through the council's leadership, NLP advocates have both saved lives and improved health care across the city.

4:26:27

Instead of talking about numbers, which we'll do in our written testimony, I really wanted to spend the short time together lifting up the people who really benefit from the council's leadership.

4:26:41

One of our clients recent clients from Elmhurst is this is G who came to NLP after her diagnosis with end stage renal disease.

4:26:50

She had lost her ability to work as a nanny and to earn a livelihood hood and was enduring this just really horribly depleting dialysis regimen.

4:27:02

She was undocumented and uninsured and enabled to access the health care that she needed for a longer term solution, which was a kidney transplant.

4:27:11

So after a legal assessment in our office, our staff found a pathway to gain her access to health insurance and to change her status.

4:27:20

Filed an immigration application, got her on health insurance, and also through advocacy, got her on a kidney transplant list.

4:27:28

And I'm incredibly happy to report that just this past December, she received a successful kidney transplant.

4:27:35

And is now living happily at home with her family and feeling a lot more healthy.

4:27:42

There's just one story among many from NLP and our initiative partner and we're asking for an enhancement to support this really important work.

4:27:50

And I also just wanted to echo our other partners who just testified about the critical need for funding fairness to support the advocacy and incredible work of our staff.

4:28:02

Thank you.

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