Financial Assessor Patient Accounting

Northwestern Memorial Healthcare • Chicago, IL

11d

About The Position

The Financial Assessor Patient Accounting supports Northwestern Medicine’s patient-first mission and complies with the organization’s Code of Ethics, Corporate Compliance Program, applicable policies and procedures, and regulatory and accreditation standards. The role manages patient-accounting work related to third-party payer claims and receivables, including timely claim resolution and submission, payer follow-up, and denial and appeal resolution. It also contributes to departmental accounts receivable goals, customer service, process improvement, and assigned projects.

Requirements

• High school diploma.
• One year of related work experience or a college degree.
• Ability to perform mathematical calculations.
• Basic knowledge of medical terminology and billing practices.
• Extensive experience and knowledge with PC applications, including Microsoft Office and Excel.
• Ability to learn quickly and meet continuous timelines.
• Behaviors consistent with principles of excellent service.
• Working knowledge of physician and facility billing and follow-up, including insurance rules and regulations, especially Medicare and Medicaid.
• Knowledge of HIPAA standards.
• Excellent communication skills when dealing with patients, families, the public, coworkers, and professional offices.

Nice To Haves

• Two or more years of college or a college degree.
• Call center, telephone, or cash collections experience.
• Knowledge of Epic Systems.
• Two years of progressive work experience in a hospital or physician billing or SBO environment.
• Detail-oriented with good organizational skills and the ability to work independently.
• Strong time management skills and ability to manage multiple priorities and a heavy workload in a high-stress atmosphere.
• Flexibility to perform other tasks as needed in an active work environment with changing work needs.
• High-level problem-solving, analytical, and investigational skills.
• Excellent internal and external customer service skills.

Responsibilities

• Meet productivity and quality standards for claim edits, bill-candidate reporting, compliant claim submission, clinical documentation requirements, claim communications, timely filing, and clean, complete, accurate claims.
• Meet or exceed assigned productivity targets, error ratios, and reporting requirements.
• Follow up on and collect third-party payer receivables in a timely manner.
• Follow up on denials and appeals, analyze root causes to reduce or prevent future denials, and work to overturn denials for payment resolution.
• Send compliant follow-up correspondence to third-party payers about outstanding receivables, including statements, letters, emails, faxes, and portal messages.
• Support accounts receivable operations for managed care, commercial, Medicare, Medicaid, replacement plans, workers’ compensation, corporate accounts, research, and specialty accounts.
• Review work lists daily and systematically, completing accounts that are ready to be worked.
• Use government, commercial, and regulatory guidelines to collect outstanding accounts.
• Recommend accounts for contractual or administrative write-off and provide appropriate justification and documentation.
• Follow HIPAA privacy standards and protect patient health information.
• Contribute to the team’s achievement of department accounts receivable goals.
• Identify customer, system, and process improvement opportunities and submit them to management.
• Follow NMHC and departmental policies and procedures, emergency preparedness procedures, and Joint Commission and other regulatory agency requirements.
• Use assigned menus and pathways in the hospital mainframe and external software applications, and report software problems to the appropriate supervisor.
• Use assigned computer hardware and report hardware problems to the appropriate supervisor.
• Participate in testing assigned software applications, including verification of field integrity.
• Assist the Patient Accounting Operational Coordinator and Patient Accounting Team Lead Financial Assessor with special projects and other assigned duties.
• Attend training and seminars as assigned and approved by the Patient Accounting Operations Coordinator.
• Provide excellent oral and written customer service and assistance to patients, authorized guarantors, and internal and external contacts.
• Use systems proficiently and execute processes across areas of responsibility.
• Apply working knowledge of physician and facility billing and follow-up, including insurance rules and regulations, especially Medicare and Medicaid.
• Perform mathematical calculations and use knowledge of medical terminology and billing practices.

Benefits

• Competitive benefits, including tuition reimbursement, loan forgiveness, and 401(k) matching.
• A range of benefits intended to support employees’ physical, emotional, and financial well-being and provide protection for unexpected life events.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Education Level: High school or GED