Local Leader, National First - Paul H. Flowers Jr. Earns Fiduciary Advisor Certification Amid Broken Healthcare System

Faith and civic leaders play a vital role in shaping community well-being. Paul H. Flowers Jr., through Life Health & Legal Education Partners, merges ministry and management to promote healthcare justice. As the first African American Validation Institute Certified Fiduciary Advisor, Flowers views stewardship as both spiritual and social. End Quote

Gary, IN (1888PressRelease) October 09, 2025 - A local nonprofit is shining a beacon of hope on America’s troubled employee benefits landscape. Paul H. Flowers Jr., founder and president of Life Health & Legal Education Partners, has become the first African American – and only the tenth person overall - to earn the Validation Institute’s Fiduciary Benefits Advisor certification. This achievement by a community-focused leader comes as the US health care system, from a worker’s perspective, is widely regarded as “in shambles,” with sky-high costs forcing many families to forego needed care[4].

Flowers’ newly validated expertise positions him to intensify the nonprofit’s mission of empowering underserved communities and employers with the knowledge and tools to escape the broken benefits status quo.

Life Health & Legal Education Partners (LHLEP) is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to bridging the dangerous gaps between everyday families and critical knowledge about healthcare, finance, and legal rights. Flowers – who founded LHLEP in 2018 – has devoted two decades to training and educating others on navigating the complexities of health benefits and insurance[11]. The Validation Institute’s fiduciary designation now adds external credibility and reinforcement to the ethical standards he has championed all along. To earn it, Flowers had to demonstrate that his approach to advising employers meets strict fiduciary criteria: fee-only compensation, full transparency, and a commitment to act solely in the client’s best interest[2]. In an industry where most brokers still earn hidden commissions from insurance carriers and pharmacy benefit managers – a practice that drives up costs and erodes trust[1] – Flowers’ stance is a rare commitment to put people over profits.

“As health care costs continue to rise at unaffordable rates, its impacts are far-reaching for American businesses and families,” says Jeff Bak, CEO of Imagine360, reacting to a recent national survey on health benefits[12]. That survey found 38% of insured Americans delayed treatment in the past year because they couldn’t afford it, even though 80% had employer-sponsored insurance[4]. In underserved communities, the situation can be even more dire. Paul Flowers Jr. believes knowledge is power when it comes to tackling these issues.

Through Life Health & Legal Education Partners, he has led workshops and initiatives to educate employees, union members, and small business owners about their rights and options in the health care system. Now, with his fiduciary advisor certification, Flowers plans to expand LHLEP’s educational programs to show more people how to get better value from their health plans and demand accountability from the industry.

“This certification isn’t just another credential for me – it’s a tool for advocacy,” said Paul H. Flowers Jr., who in addition to running the nonprofit also heads the benefits consultancy Superior Insurance Advisors. “At Life Health & Legal Education Partners, our goal has always been to arm people with knowledge so they don’t get taken advantage of in healthcare or legal matters. Now I can also confidently say I’m among the very few advisors in the country who have been independently validated to practice what I preach - truly putting the public’s interest first. Families and employers in our communities deserve honest guidance, especially now with healthcare costs out of control.”

Flowers points out that many employers – including small businesses and nonprofits - don’t realize their insurance brokers may be profiting at their expense, or that there are alternative health plan designs that could save money. By embracing the fiduciary model, he hopes to change that. It’s a message that resonates strongly during the current open enrollment season, when workers are reviewing options and many will once again face higher premiums or skimpier coverage. “We’ve heard the heartbreaking stories,” Flowers said. “Families rationing insulin or skipping doctor visits because the deductible is too high – in the wealthiest country in the world, it’s unconscionable. We can do better, and we will do better by educating and empowering people with the truth.”

Under Flowers’ leadership, LHLEP is preparing a series of free webinars and community town halls over the coming months, focusing on topics such as “How to Spot and Stop Waste in Your Health Plan” and “Employees’ Rights in Open Enrollment.” The goal is to leverage his fiduciary advisor insights to equip both employers and employees with practical strategies – from negotiating with insurers, to utilizing supplemental benefits, to understanding new price transparency tools – that can alleviate the burden of healthcare costs. Importantly, Flowers also sees his recent accomplishment as a chance to inspire change within the insurance industry itself. As a Black entrepreneur in a field that remains overwhelmingly white (nearly 90% of insurance brokers are non-Black by recent estimates[13]), he views his success as a step toward greater diversity and inclusion. “I may be the first African American with this credential, but I certainly don’t intend to be the last,” Flowers noted. “Part of education is also mentorship – showing younger professionals, especially those of color, that we need them in this fight to fix healthcare. When the solvers at the table reflect the communities they serve, we get better outcomes.”

Local leaders are taking notice of Flowers’ efforts. Northwest Indiana and Chicagoland employers – facing some of the highest regional healthcare costs in the nation – have begun reaching out to LHLEP for guidance. The nonprofit’s unique blend of educational advocacy and hands-on benefits strategy offers a lifeline for organizations that lack large HR departments or specialized expertise. For many small businesses, an unbiased advisor like Flowers can mean the difference between cutting staff to afford insurance or finding a sustainable way to continue coverage. “Paul has been a godsend for us,” says one local business owner who attended a LHLEP seminar (and subsequently worked with Flowers to revamp his company’s benefits plan). “He helped us see where the waste was and what our broker never told us. We went from dreading renewal time to actually having choices that saved us money and gave our employees better benefits.”

Those kinds of success stories are what Life Health & Legal Education Partners aims to replicate at scale. Media interested in the intersection of health care, financial literacy, and social equity will find Paul H. Flowers Jr.’s perspective and work compelling. He stands at the crossroads of these issues, a certified fiduciary advisor who is using his elite expertise not just in corporate boardrooms, but on the ground in communities that need the most help.

For more information, educational resources, or to contact Paul H. Flowers Jr., please visit Paul.health. The website provides media contact details, event announcements, and scheduling for consultations or interviews. By leveraging knowledge and integrity, Flowers and Life Health & Legal Education Partners are determined to transform the narrative around employee benefits – from one of confusion and exploitation to one of clarity, empowerment, and hope.

About Life Health & Legal Education Partners: Life Health & Legal Education Partners is a nonprofit organization based in Chicago, IL, devoted to educating and empowering individuals and employers in matters of health, financial wellness, and legal rights. Founded in 2018 by Paul H. Flowers Jr., LHLEP focuses on closing knowledge gaps that leave families and businesses vulnerable to high healthcare costs, inadequate insurance, and other systemic challenges. Through workshops, seminars, published books, and one-on-one advising, the organization has impacted thousands of lives by teaching practical strategies to save money on healthcare, access legal protections, and make informed benefits decisions.

LHLEP collaborates with community groups, churches, and small business associations across the Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana region. Our motto: Knowledge is power – and everyone deserves access to it. http://www.SuperiorInsuranceAdvisors.com

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