For more than 60 years, GreenPath Financial Wellness has helped people seeking financial management counseling. Founded in Michigan, it has grown to become one of the largest nonprofit financial counseling organizations in the U.S. CEO Kristen Holt talked about the nonprofit’s mission and how it approaches financial literacy and education.
Can you tell us about the mission of GreenPath Financial Wellness and how it has evolved over the years?
GreenPath has been around for over 60 years; we were formed in 1961. Our mission is to empower people to lead financially healthy lives. We work with people to provide them tools to manage life’s ups and downs and achieve their dreams and accomplish their financial goals. We started in Michigan as a local nonprofit, but we’ve expanded now so that we are national, and we are one of the largest credit organizations in the country. Our roots are still here in Michigan. We work with partners all over the country, so that’s how people find us. We partner with over 580 banks, credit unions, employers and others so that people can access financial counseling, and we can provide those services to their employees and members.
What are the challenges you face in providing financial counseling and debt management services?
People don’t know where to turn, and they don’t know whom to trust. ... GreenPath’s call volume in January 2024 was 57% higher than January 2022. We’ve seen a dramatic jump in demand for our debt management program. We are here for people. It's really important for people to know it’s a trusted nonprofit resource right in their backyard that’s here for them and can help navigate these complex situations.
How does GreenPath approach the issue of financial literacy and education, especially in underserved communities?
GreenPath's approach is rooted in empathy-focused coaching and human-centered design, recognizing the influence of emotion and cultural backgrounds on financial decisions. Through initiatives like IDEA, GreenPath is committed to improving financial literacy and education in historically marginalized communities.
How do you tailor your services to meet the unique needs of communities of color?
By integrating demographic questions into our protocol and providing counseling in multiple languages, GreenPath ensures inclusivity. We adapt our services based on insights from interviews with multicultural audiences, addressing unique needs such as nontraditional income sources and collection debt.
Can you explain the Credit Escalator program in more detail? How does it help rebuild trust in financial institutions among BIPOC [black, indigenous, and other people of color] communities?
Trust is a barrier throughout financial services but especially with communities of color, who have been historically marginalized and really earned that distrust with financial services. We designed the Credit Escalator program with these audiences in mind to issue an unsecured loan at a more reasonable interest rate. This groundbreaking initiative for Detroit residents pairs free financial coaching with a low-interest personal loan to improve credit and long-term financial health.
As a partnership, we are working with Michigan First Credit Union on this. People can access the loan with no credit score requirements. The loan is used to repay whatever bad debt is sitting on their credit report or a payday loan at a more reasonable interest rate. So by repaying the new loan, they’re rebuilding their credit in the process. As they get positive payments on this new line of credit, that’s going to increase their credit score. So someone who’s looking to purchase a house or wants to get a car but doesn’t have a high enough credit score to get a good rate. This could be a great tool to help them and get a good relationship with Michigan First Credit Union.
Beyond the sticker shock: Rethinking health care expenses for wealthy families
By JOHN M. SAMUELS
As the CEO of a health care advisory firm, I have seen firsthand the enormous costs incurred by high-net-worth families when caring for their loved ones. And though these families have the necessary resources to pay for care and treatment, the expenses can be daunting.
But they don't have to be. While a family office can help families maintain generational wealth, other experts are often needed to align and create generational health.
With this understanding of the financial strains faced by high-net-worth families in health care, it becomes clear how integral a comprehensive approach is to preserving both wealth and well-being.
An illustrative case is Jim, a 70-year-old former Manhattan artist and one of our valued clients, whose financial affairs are managed by a multi-family office. He suffers from Parkinson’s, depression, an unsteady gait and gets easily overwhelmed and disorganized. He recently told his wealth adviser that he decided to enter a luxury assisted-living facility, which would cost close to $300,000 per year. Considering his age and life expectancy, the total spend on this decision could cost $4 million to 5 million. Considering the impact of this expense on his financial portfolio, his wealth adviser contacted our team, and we came up with a more appropriate and affordable solution.
And while elder care — whether it’s assisted living, memory care or a nursing home — is what we often see in terms of overspending, we also see quite a few cases of children who need costly treatment.
Our client Samantha, a college student, suffers from an eating disorder, anxiety and depression. Her mother suggested an inpatient private-pay eating-disorder program for several months, costing over $100,000 per month. After consulting with us, we created an alternative plan, placing her in a top outpatient program, which accepted her insurance, and she remained at home — and recovered.
These examples vividly underscore the complex and costly nature of the U.S. health care system. Expertise is needed to support people and mitigate risk, both health and financial. Overspending in health care manifests in various ways, often from those selecting the wrong health care insurance coverage, resulting in exorbitant out-of-pocket expenses. Others don’t have health care plans that model the costs of care and treatment. Bridging this gap necessitates the guidance of experts well-versed in both medical treatments and their corresponding costs. Here are four essential tips to bear in mind when evaluating health care expenses:
- Medicare does not cover most home care services, and many behavioral health doctors do not accept health insurance.
- As people get sicker, expenses increase (traveling for a second opinion, home modifications, uncovered medications).
- Create a written plan modeling health care expenses.
- Align your experts and advisers. Make sure your health care experts are talking with your wealth adviser to ensure expenses are planned.
In addition to these common expenses, scams often target the affluent. High-net-worth individuals may find themselves targeted by people selling false hope or miracle cures.
For example, if a loved one has dementia, and a doctor recommends an experimental treatment that costs tens of thousands of dollars a year, you might think, "Well, it can’t hurt.” It may feel good to be doing something, but is there any scientific proof that the treatment works? There may not be.
What can you do? First, if a treatment sounds too good to be true, check the facts. Fraudulent treatments aren’t just a waste of money. They may do more harm than good, especially if they delay a patient from seeking a more effective treatment.
Make sure that the treatment suggested is FDA-approved. Many new treatments are always being developed and can indeed be beneficial. Doctors may suggest experimental treatment options based on new research or even their own research, and those treatments may have value. From designer vitamins to longevity centers, many patients and their families find it challenging to separate the science from the snake oil when it comes to health care options. An objective, independent adviser in the medical field can provide critical insights.
Ultimately, the journey toward balanced health care expenditure is a collaborative effort, requiring coordination among a diverse array of professionals, including health care advisers, therapists, physicians, and wealth managers. By embracing this holistic approach, high-net-worth families can navigate the complex health care landscape with confidence, safeguarding their financial legacies against overspending and scams while promoting the health of their loved ones. A health adviser can help build a team of professionals to develop an intelligent spending strategy for you and your family.