Patient Account Specialist

Description

We are North Idaho’s premier provider of integrated medical, dental and behavioral health services. Our amazing care teams deliver world-class healthcare utilizing a patient directed, community-focused approach. Providing high quality, affordable Healthcare from the Heart is our passion. Our mission is to deliver a healthcare experience that provides hope, inspires change, and extends life for our patients and our community.

Top reasons to join our team:

• Our employees are mission – minded
• We are passionate about providing excellent patient care
• Community-focused
• Committed to a fun and supportive team environment
• We offer high-quality competitive employee benefits

Summary:

The Patient Account Specialist serves as the main point of contact for incoming billing calls, patient questions and disputes as well as provides follow-up and collections from patients on their past due balances.

Requirements

Minimum qualifications:

High school diploma or GED; and 1 year of relevant work experience required.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities Requested:

1. Ability to communicate diplomatically, both orally and in writing with both internal and external customers.
2. Skilled in the use of Electronic Health Records and current company software applications, including spreadsheets.
3. Knowledge in healthcare billing practices.
4. Knowledge of basic collection principles.
5. Ability to gather data, analyze and solve account related problems.

Duties and Responsibilities:

1. Understands and adheres to state and federal regulations, and to company policies/values regarding to compliance, integrity, patient privacy and ethical billing and collection practices.
2. Communicates daily via telephone with patients to address their questions and concerns.
3. Monitors patient aging balances.
4. Positive de-escalation of patient concerns.
5. Investigates and resolves patient related billing concerns in a timely fashion.
6. Understands and adheres to HIPAA and PHI guidelines.
7. Makes necessary demographic changes to patient accounts to ensure accuracy for future billing.
8. Creates mutually agreeable repayment plans considering patient’s budget and company policy.
9. Obtains proof of income, as needed, to qualify patients for income sliding scale.
10. Identifies patterns of billing errors, inaccurate payments, posting errors and communicates any needed system changes to direct Supervisor.
11. Creates and maintains meticulous records of follow-up efforts via the billing system.
12. Reduces overall delinquent patient AR.
13. Reduces use of outside collection agencies.
14. Provides professional and courteous customer service at all times.
15. Other duties as assigned.

Safety:

Heritage Health enforces a safety culture whereby all employees have the responsibility for continuously developing and maintaining a safe working environment. Each employee is responsible for completing all training requirements, participating in emergency response tasks as requested, and serving on safety committees and teams as requested. In addition, employees must accept the responsibility for maintaining the safety of themselves and others by adhering to all written and verbal instructions, promptly reporting and/or correcting all hazards or unsafe conditions and providing feedback to supervisors and management on all safety issues.

Physical/Mental Requirements:

Required to stand, sit, and be mobile one-third to two-thirds of the time. They are required to use hands to finger, handle or feel over two-thirds of the time; while reaching with hands and arms occurs one-third of the day. Communicating by talking / hearing occurs over two-thirds of the day. Must be able to manage efficient keyboard use, hear, see, speak and read.

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Ability to identify problems and review related information using logic and reasoning to evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Positive, calm, interpersonal, communication & persuasion skills over the phone, computer & in person.
• Must be able to simultaneously manage several objectives and assign priorities
• Deal with a wide variety of variables in situations where only limited standardization exists
• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written or oral form
• Regular and predictable attendance is an essential function of this position.
• Ability to work effectively under pressure to meet deadlines with a strong organization skill set for easy retrieval of information and to ensure competent closure of issues.
• Ability to work overtime as needed, maintain alertness & meet the controlled substance policy.
• Good judgment and sound decision making and conflict management skills to inspire confidence from the customer

Working Conditions:

Work is normally performed in a typical interior/office work environment. Work may be demanding and chaotic at times.

Salary : $18 - $27