Navigating the US healthcare system—insurance coverage plans, government agencies, pharmacies, and medical providers— can be challenging. While many organizations have introduced automation to improve efficiency, personalized support still plays an important role in helping people understand their benefits and access the care they need.
LaborFirst provides healthcare navigation and advocacy services for unions, employers, and their members. Its Member Advocacy Services team serves as a single point of contact for healthcare-related questions, helping members understand their coverage, coordinate with providers and insurance carriers, resolve billing issues, and make the most of their benefit plans.
Combining Personal Support With Practical Solutions
LaborFirst's advocacy team includes more than 180 US-based employees dedicated to member support. Advocates assist with everyday needs such as locating specialists, arranging mail-order prescriptions, and confirming prescription coverage, while also helping members navigate more complex situations, including prior authorizations, network changes, and major medical procedures.
The team completes extensive onboarding and annual geriatric-sensitivity training, and many Advocates are bilingual. A HIPAA-compliant translation service supporting more than 300 languages helps extend assistance to members with diverse language needs.
Unlike many traditional call centers, LaborFirst measures Advocates on service quality rather than call length or quotas, allowing them to spend as much time as needed with each member. The organization also emphasizes proactive outreach, with Advocates making nearly twice as many outbound calls as inbound to help resolve issues before they become larger problems.
Improving the Member Experience
In 2024 and 2025, LaborFirst's Member Advocacy Services team resolved more than 550,000 member cases. Since 2022, the team has also helped close more than 9,000 gaps in care by encouraging preventive screenings, annual exams, vaccinations, and chronic care programs.
The company's approach has also resulted in consistently high member satisfaction, maintaining a Net Promoter Score (NPS) above 90 each month since 2022.
Individual member stories illustrate the practical impact of the team's work. Advocates have helped members recover incorrectly billed healthcare costs, secure approvals for critical medical procedures, and obtain financial assistance for high-cost prescription medications by coordinating with healthcare providers, pharmacies, and nonprofit organizations.
Expanding Healthcare Advocacy Services
In 2025, LaborFirst expanded its advocacy model by introducing HealthActive for active employees and early retirees, along with RetireeFirst for Individuals, broadening access to its healthcare navigation services.
While technology helps reduce administrative work, LaborFirst's model emphasizes direct human interaction. By giving Advocates the time and resources to build relationships, answer questions, and guide members through complex healthcare decisions, the organization aims to provide support that extends beyond a traditional customer service experience.
LaborFirst won a Silver Stevie® Award for Front-Line Customer Service Team of the Year – Other Service Industries in the 2026 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.
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