advocate finances

How Much Do Patient Advocates Charge?

I’m often asked what questions people ask me most frequently. The answer is some variation of this family of questions: How much does an advocate charge? What is the hourly rate for health or patient advocates? How much money do patient advocates make? How much money do patient advocates get paid? What is the average amount patient advocates charge? We’ll begin by answering with other questions (bad form, but it makes our point…) How much does it cost to take a vacation? What does it cost to go to college? How much more can I make if I get a …

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When Is an Advocate Not an Advocate?

image - no excuses

Twice in the past week, I heard from people whose APHA memberships expired, explaining why they didn’t renew. In both cases excuses in the form of complaints about their memberships were made. A little bit of research turned up the facts that those complaints were at least misguided. I responded to each of them about their frustrations. In both cases, they felt insulted. Now, don’t get me wrong. I receive criticism and suggestions on a regular basis, sometimes including good, usable, feedback. I’m always appreciative of constructive feedback and ideas even if it’s in the form of criticism. That’s how …

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To Gain a New Client, You’ll Have to Break 2 Bad Habits

The phone rings. It’s a new, potential client calling. You answer, “This is Joan Advocate. May I help you?” The client, Juanita, is relieved to hear your friendly voice. She launches into her story about the doctor not listening to her, and that she can’t fill her prescription because it’s too expensive. Then she asks if you can help her.

The Sinkhole

Regular readers of this blog know a couple of things about me. For one thing, they know I live in Florida, having moved here from Upstate NY two years ago, no longer willing to freeze my cabungus off during the winter. (Or, as my husband phrases it, “you don’t have to shovel 90 degrees!”) They also know many of my blog posts are metaphorical, based on inspiration I get from my daily life which at times is well, yes, pretty darn metaphorical! And thus we set the stage for today’s post – The Sinkhole. Pure Florida. Pure Metaphor. See what …

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When Life Defies Logic

…then it’s time to get logical. And logic will triumph! As many readers know, I’m in the process of coordinating our APHA Summits. We had our first Summit adventure in San Diego a few weeks ago. What a delight! We all learned so much from each other! Next up… Newark / NYC, then on to Chicago, and two new groups of passionate advocates. (I can’t wait!) What few people understand is the amount of preparation required to make these Summits happen. It’s not so simple as everyone showing up in the same place at the same time to connect with …

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Should Insurance Provide Reimbursement to Independent Advocates?

I had interesting conversations with someday-advocates last week. I love those conversations; I always learn something from them which I can then bring back to the Alliance and the information we share with members. And then again, sometimes the questions I hear are the same ones that have cropped up over and over again, including today’s question: Is there insurance reimbursement for the work of an independent advocate? This time, I’m going to answer that question with a few questions of my own.

Income Tax Time – Saving Money and Saving Trouble

It’s that time of year when, every time we turn around, we’re being reminded that it’s time to file our income tax returns. I rank those moments right down there with getting a tooth drilled, hearing that a high school friend died, or, these days, watching the news. Yeah. So, in hopes of removing some of the sting, and in an effort to pull all the material together, accessible in one place, I’m going to take this occasion to compile into one post what I’ve had to say over the years about taxes on this blog: yours, your clients, and …

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