Building a Health Care Legal Partnership Learning Collaborative

Many Americans need both health care and legal interventions to maximize their opportunities for health. Medical-legal partnerships (MLPs), also known as health care legal partnerships (HLPs), bring the power of law to health care to reduce barriers and negative social determinants of health. The two terms--HLP and MLP--are used interchangeably in this article. Growing research shows that these partnerships can improve care, improve health, enhance interprofessional collaboration, and improve the financial status of patients and providers. HLPs take many forms, depending on their settings and resources. A health care legal partnership learning collaborative that brings leaders of diverse HLPs together to share experiences and best practices can help expand this effective model and enhance its potential for collective impact in improving population health.