Patient advocate near me
Every kind of advocate near you. Including the free ones.
If you searched “patient advocate near me”, you are probably trying to get help for a parent and are not sure what kind. Here is the whole landscape in your area: what each option does, what it costs, how to find it, and which one fits.
Prefer to speak with someone? Call 628 234 2273 (NAV-234-CARE). Free initial call. No obligation.
How to find the right one
Five steps, in the order that saves the most money.
Start with what is already free in your area
The hospital’s patient representative (ask at any nurses’ station), your state SHIP for Medicare questions (1-877-839-2675), and your Area Agency on Aging for meals, rides and respite (Eldercare Locator, 1-800-677-1116). All free. All staffed by people who do this all day.
Ask whether Medicare will cover a navigator
Since 2024, Medicare Part B covers Community Health Integration for eligible patients when practical challenges are affecting care, and Principal Illness Navigation for serious illness. Delivered under a Medicare-enrolled practitioner, by phone and video anywhere in the country. This is what Navigate Care provides.
If you need someone in the room, look for a private advocate
Search the directories of the Alliance of Professional Health Advocates, the National Association of Healthcare Advocacy, or Greater National Advocates for a Board Certified Patient Advocate near you. Expect $100–$250 an hour. Ask for references, insurance and a written estimate.
If placement or family conflict is the issue, consider a geriatric care manager
The Aging Life Care Association directory lists licensed care managers by zip code. Expect $150–$250 an hour and a substantial initial assessment fee. Worth it for complex placement decisions and for supervising private caregivers.
Match the tool to the problem, not the label
A billing dispute wants a bill advocate. A coverage question wants SHIP. A parent with three doctors, two pending referrals and no rides wants a navigator. Most families need coordination more than confrontation, and coordination is the part Medicare now pays for.
At a glance
Who does what, and who pays.
Hospital patient representative
$0Problems during an admission. Fast, internal, free.
SHIP counselor
$0Medicare choices, enrollment, appeals guidance. Every state.
Area Agency on Aging
$0Meals, rides, respite, home-safety programs. Every county.
Navigate Care navigator
$0 for mostOngoing coordination across every doctor, agency and benefit. Medicare Part B.
Private patient advocate
$100–$250 / hrDisputes, bill audits, appointment attendance. You pay.
Geriatric care manager
$150–$250 / hrAssessment, placement, caregiver supervision. You pay.
Full details in our side-by-side comparison.
Near you
Local pages, with the programs and resources for each place.
Texas
All states
Medicare may cover Navigate Care.
Medicare Part B covers Community Health Integration services for eligible patients when everyday challenges are affecting their health or access to care.
Questions families ask
Is there a free patient advocate near me?
Almost certainly, in several forms. Every hospital has a patient representative. Every state has a SHIP with free Medicare counselors. Every county is served by an Area Agency on Aging. And Medicare now covers navigation for eligible patients, which is what Navigate Care provides. Private advocates cost money; the public options do not.
Does Navigate Care have advocates in my city?
Navigate Care coordinates by phone and video in every state, working with the doctors and agencies in your parent’s area. Where in-person support is available we will tell you on the first call. For most families, the coordination they need, the calls, the follow-ups, the paperwork, does not require anyone in the room.
What is the difference between a patient advocate and a care navigator?
The words overlap and the profession is unregulated, so ask what the person actually does and who pays them. Broadly: private advocates are hired by the family and often focus on disputes and specific projects; navigators coordinate care over time and are often paid by a hospital or by Medicare. Our guide on advocates versus navigators goes deeper.
How do I check a private advocate’s credentials?
Look for the Board Certified Patient Advocate (BCPA) credential from the Patient Advocate Certification Board, ask about clinical or billing background, professional liability insurance, and two past clients you can speak with. Any advocate worth hiring will answer without hesitating.
My parent lives in a rural area. What are the options?
Private advocates and care managers are thin outside metro areas, which is where phone-and-video navigation matters most. SHIP and the Area Agency on Aging still serve every county. Navigate Care coordinates nationwide, so a rural zip code does not change what we can do.
Guides
Read more about this
How to find a patient advocate you can trust
The title isn't regulated, so anyone can use it. Here's where to look, what credentials mean, the questions that separate the good ones — and the free options to exhaust first.
What is a patient advocate, and do you need one?
A patient advocate is the person whose only job is your side of the healthcare system. Here's what they actually do all day — and the four different kinds, which are not the same thing.
Patient advocate vs patient navigator: what's the difference?
The two words describe nearly the same work, and people use them interchangeably. But the difference is real, it's about employment and scope, and it changes what you should ask for.
How much does a patient advocate cost?
Private advocates run $100 to $250 an hour, and nobody tells you that up front. Here's the real range, what drives it, what it's worth, and the versions that cost nothing.
How to choose a patient advocate: the questions, the credentials, the red flags
It is an unregulated profession. Anyone can use the title. Here is how to tell a good one, what to ask before you hire, and when the right advocate is free.
Geriatric care manager vs. care navigator: which does your family need?
They sound alike and are paid completely differently. What each one does, what each costs, when you need the one the family pays for, and when Medicare covers the other.
The nearest help might be one phone call away.
Tell us what is happening. We will listen, check whether Navigate Care can help and explain the next step.
Or call 628 234 2273 (NAV-234-CARE). Free initial call. No obligation.