Eric Carlson has devoted his legal career —over 35 years at this point — to advocating for older Americans who need long-term services and supports (LTSS). Mr. Carlson’s work encompasses all forms of LTSS — including home and community-based services, assisted living facilities, and nursing facility care — with a focus in each on improving access and quality. In administrative advocacy, Mr. Carlson speaks regularly with officials from the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), seeking improvements in federal policy on (for example) Medicaid LTSS coverage, and the quality-of-care standards for assisted living facilities and nursing facilities. In litigation, Mr. Carlson co-counsels impact litigation protecting LTSS consumers, most recently in a case resulting in at least 2,400 Massachusetts residents being given necessary assistance so they can move out of their nursing facilities and into the community.
Prior to Justice in Aging, Mr. Carlson for ten years provided direct legal representation to LTSS consumers, and his work today maintains an expertise in achieving justice in individual cases. Among other things, Mr. Carlson counsels attorneys from across the country, and is the author of Justice in Aging’s widely-used guide to nursing facility advocacy, 25 Common Nursing Home Problems — and How to Resolve Them. Mr. Carlson also is author of the comprehensive legal treatise Long-Term Care Advocacy, published by Lexis Publishing.
Mr. Carlson grew up in Minnesota and other midwestern states, and is a graduate of the University of Minnesota (undergraduate) and the University of California at Berkeley (law school). He is a member of the bar of the State of California, and several federal district and appellate courts.
Mr. Carlson is a regular bicycle commuter and, on the weekends, often takes longer rides to the ocean or up in the hills above Los Angeles.
State Bar Admissions: California, Northern District of California, Central District of California, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
