How Care Management Helps Unions Take Better Care of Members While Reducing Healthcare Costs  

Chronic condition care is already costing unions more than it should and, without intervention, that’s not going to change anytime soon. 

Here’s the breakdown: Three in four Americans live with at least one chronic condition, and over 14 million Americans – one in ten members of the United States workforce – belong to a union. That means that as the cost of chronic disease worldwide is projected to reach $47 trillion by 2030, unions can expect to shoulder much of the cost of managing members’ chronic conditions. 

This leaves union leaders in a bind. How do you continue to take the best possible care of the people who need it most? At the same time, how do you save on care so you can provide more benefits to members and their families? And how do you ensure that the care members get for their conditions is effective enough to prevent avoidable hospital stays, urgent care visits, and expensive medications?  

You need a way to rein in spending, improve health outcomes for members and their families, and make care more accessible for everyone. That’s where care management becomes a crucial tool for unions and funds looking to create a happier, healthier member base.  

Chronic Condition Risk for Union Workers

Union workers are diverse and so are the trades they work in. Many of those trades carry with them factors that can contribute to chronic conditions if not balanced by healthy habits:  

• Operating engineers, pilots, and truck drivers may be seated for long stretches of the day and can be at greater risk of obesity, overweight, and related conditions due to inactivity.  

• Awkward postures and repetitive motions may increase the risk of chronic pain for a wide variety of tradespeople, including pipefitters, healthcare workers, and baggage handlers.  

• Shift work and trades that take workers to jobsites across state lines may make it difficult to access ongoing preventive care at a traditional community facility, meaning chronic conditions may go overlooked or under-treated. 

On top of all of these things, when members get appointments with community providers, they are often rushed and impersonal, with little time spent understanding the lifestyle factors and social drivers of health that can influence union members’ health.  When members have relationships with their providers, they can be more empowered to ask questions and build goals to manage their conditions.  

Union leaders have the power to make care more accessible for their members in the field. Your benefits should help workers and their families build relationships with knowledgeable providers and get personalized support, and direct healthcare is the key. 

A Smarter Path Forward: Proactive, Accessible Care Management  

Care management leverages education and treatment plans to support high-risk, high-cost patients on an ongoing basis – not just once a year at a check-up. Care managers, specially trained registered nurses, take a personal approach to managing conditions by addressing some of the behaviors that drive them, including tobacco use, poor nutrition, lack of sleep and physical activity, and stress. They meet one-on-one with members to understand their existing health concerns. Then, they work with members to set goals, guide them through the lifestyle changes needed to reach those goals, and hold them accountable as they work towards better health. 

Enhanced access

When care management is available through a union-sponsored wellness center that’s already in the neighborhoods where members and their families live and work, they don’t have to spend months on a waiting list like they would for a community service. They can engage when and how they want, including virtually for those who might travel on-the-job.  

Proactive outreach  

Members won’t use care they don’t know about. That’s why care management solutions prioritize identifying and reaching out to high-risk union members whose conditions may be driving up costs for your union due to frequent ER visits and specialty medications. Whether it’s via a friendly phone call, home mailers, or incentivized programs, care managers preemptively engage to help members and family members handling conditions make the most of their benefits. 

Tailored support 

When care managers are dedicated to a union population, they’re able to learn more about the nuances of the trade, region, and culture of the people they work with. This allows them to personalize care and build trusted relationships with members. As a result, care managers can ensure that new health habits align with members’ values and lifestyles while addressing social drivers of health that could keep them from seeking appropriate care. 

Holistic care 

Care management can also integrate with other types of care as part of an advanced primary care approach. For example, if a member is regularly seeing their care manager to control their blood sugar, their care manager may also communicate with the onsite pharmacist to ensure that the member’s medication is working effectively. Or, if stress is a major contributing factor to a member’s high blood pressure, the care manager may make a warm referral to a licensed counselor so the member can get additional behavioral health support. This means the member has an entire team of support behind them with their whole-person health in mind.  

How Care Management Saves Money and Improves Health  

Care management puts a team of experts in your members’ corner, helping them improve their health. But the benefits don’t end with the member.  

If your population experiences more chronic conditions on average, it’s likely your fund sees elevated healthcare spending. Why? 

It’s a combination of factors. The average cost of a treat-and-release emergency department visit ranges from $440 to $1,100 depending on the age of the patient. In 2021, this added up to over $80.3 billion in spending on ED visits. Patients with one or more chronic conditions make up the majority of emergency ED visits, and are more likely to require admission after an ED visit, adding on additional cost. That’s on top of the baseline cost of chronic conditions, including sometimes expensive medications to manage them. Research shows that managing Type 2 Diabetes can cost over $14,000 on average, and annual costs for people with high blood pressure is $2,926 higher on average than for those without. 

When union members have access to resources that can prevent, manage, and reverse chronic health conditions, it reduces the likelihood of expensive visits by encouraging them to pursue healthier lifestyles. This helps them stay adherent to testing and medication and gives them an additional expert to tap into when they have questions or concerns.  

In turn, cost of care for unions and Taft-Hartley funds stabilizes, and resources can be redirected towards additional benefits for members and their families or saved for the future.  

The Long-Term Win: Healthier Members, Stronger Funds  

When union leaders invest in accessible, integrated care management as part of their benefits plan, they strengthen their organization’s long-term sustainability, ensure members are getting the right care at the right time, and boost member satisfaction with their benefits. Direct healthcare makes this possible by providing unions with the tools and benefits they need to support members with chronic conditions. 

Explore how direct healthcare and care management can protect both your members’ health and your fund’s future. Contact us today to learn more. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

How is care management different from traditional community-based care? 
Care management offers proactive, ongoing support for chronic condition management rather than one quick annual visit. Members receive one-on-one guidance and a tailored treatment plan from a dedicated nurse who understands their trade, lifestyle, and health needs—helping them stay on track with medications, testing, and healthy habits in ways community providers often can’t match. 

What types of chronic conditions benefit most from care management? 
Care management is especially effective for high-risk, high-cost conditions like diabetes, hypertension, COPD, and chronic pain. It also supports the reversal of lifestyle-related risks such as tobacco use, obesity, stress, and poor sleep—common challenges in many trades. 

How does care management save money for unions and Taft-Hartley funds? 
By helping members prevent avoidable ER visits, hospitalizations, and complications, care management reduces overall healthcare utilization and improves condition control. This stabilizes fund spending and frees resources for additional benefits for members and their families.