Via Benefits for Labor Unions
A modern, sustainable approach to delivering healthcare choice through the individual marketplace.
Labor unions and multi-employer funds trust Via Benefits to reduce retiree healthcare costs and make their health benefits more sustainable. Moving to an individual marketplace provides union retirees with comprehensive and valuable coverage they were promised, and eliminates the reliance on traditional group Medicare plans and their increasing costs and growing access to care issues.
Is your fund overpaying for retiree healthcare benefits?
Via Benefits offers a more affordable way for unions and multi‑employer funds to provide retiree healthcare choice, often at significantly lower cost than group Medicare plans. Retirees gain access to a broad range of individual plans, many of which are more comprehensive and lower cost than traditional group offerings.
Plans available through the Via Benefits Retiree marketplace range from options with nearly 100% coverage to plans with point‑of‑service copays, allowing retirees to select coverage that best fits their needs and budgets.
Why labor unions and multi‑employer funds choose Via Benefits
Experience serving union populations
Via Benefits supports 2+ million eligible lives, including 750,000+ union and trade members, and has extensive experience partnering with labor unions and multi‑employer funds across the country.
Lower‑cost plans through competition
There are 44+ million people enrolled in individual health plans nationwide. Insurance carriers compete on price in the individual marketplace, which often results in meaningful choices and lower premiums compared with group Medicare plans.
Lifetime Advocacy
Retirees receive ongoing, personalized support throughout retirement. Licensed benefit advisors remain available year after year to help retirees navigate plan changes, understand costs, and make informed decisions as their healthcare needs evolve.
Objective, unbiased benefit advisors
Retirees have access to U.S.-based, licensed benefit advisors who provide objective guidance. Advisors help retirees understand and compare options, and select best‑fit coverage. Couples may even choose separate plans based on individual needs.
A predictable, flexible funding model
Moving to a subsidy‑based approach gives unions and multi‑employer funds more predictable costs over time. Funds provide retirees with a set dollar amount for reimbursement, and retirees decide how to allocate those dollars across their chosen plan options.
This model supports long‑term sustainability while maintaining meaningful choice for retirees.
“During my initial enrollment call, my benefit advisor was extremely patient and explained the pros and cons of each plan. I was also impressed that Via Benefits allowed my wife and me to select different healthcare plans.”
— Lonnie Plot, former business manager, IBEW Local Union 613
Via Benefits helps ensure retirees feel informed, supported, and confident in their healthcare decisions, without adding administrative burden for the fund.
How Via Benefits supports labor unions
Labor unions and multi‑employer funds play a critical role in supporting the long‑term wellbeing of workers and retirees. Via Benefits is committed to advancing that mission by helping unions deliver sustainable, affordable retiree healthcare while protecting resources for other union priorities.
We believe in:
Offering choice and clarity through a stable, transparent marketplace that empowers union retirees to select coverage that fits their needs, and providing healthcare advocacy for their lifetimes
Supporting labor unions and multi‑employer funds during periods of economic instability
Designing solutions aligned with union values: trust, advocacy, fairness, and responsible stewardship of member resources
Preserving a sustainable fund that will provide meaningful, valuable coverage for current and future Union members.
