An Anchorage civil rights law firm filed a class-action lawsuit against the state Department of Health, over delays processing applications for a program that provides assistance for thousands of vulnerable Alaskans.
Natilia Edwards, a 24-year-old Anchorage resident whoin the state’s foster care system, said she applied for adult public assistance on Feb. 3. By the time the lawsuit was filed April 17, she still had not received an eligibility determination, according to the complaint.
Nicholas Feronti, an attorney who filed the lawsuit and works with the Northern Justice Project, said Edwards came to the law firm looking for help. He said that Edwards had been found to be disabled, and that she has been undergoing chemotherapy.The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Edwards, and thousands of low-income Alaskans who have experienced application delays. Anchorage Superior Court Judge Una Gandbhir has not yet scheduled a hearing.
Patty Sullivan, a spokeswoman for the Alaska Department of Law, declined to comment to the Daily News about the lawsuit. The department had just become “aware of this complaint and as of this morning was waiting to be served with the court documents,” she said by email Tuesday. At least 8,532 Alaskans had applied for adult public assistance between July 1 of last year and April 3 of this year. The state Division of Public Assistance’s— included in court documents — showed that in 2020, 81.4% of applications for adult public assistance were being processed within 30 days. By March of this year, that had dropped to 37.1%.
Feronti said that “it’s becoming clear” that there should be court oversight over the state’s public assistance programs, and potentially financial penalties until the state improves its processing rates. The Northern Justice Project was involved in
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