Advocates say a new law meant to make it easier for Missouri crime victims to request financial aid to help pay for medical coverage, counseling and other expenses appears to be working.
Katie Dalton is the director of programs and volunteers at the Crime Victim Center in St. Louis. She says it has been noticeably easier for victims to request such aid since the legal changes took effect in August.
Victims previously had to submit a notarized application to receive the aid. They also had to send in official documents and medical paperwork by mail, while hospitals and other physicians were not allowed to do so on their behalf.
Dalton says the hoops victims had to jump through sometimes led them to drop their applications altogether. She says she hopes the legal changes will shave a month off the time it takes victims to get aid.
