Financial Counselor I

Stanford Health Care•Palo Alto, PA

2d•Onsite

About The Position

The Financial Counselor Level 1 role involves screening uninsured and underinsured patients, both at bedside and before or after services, to identify government or charity programs that can cover medical expenses. This position requires conducting patient financial interviews, reviewing hospital charges, assessing insurance status, and evaluating financial resources. Responsibilities may include completing necessary applications and diligently following up for approval. The individual must possess strong oral and written communication skills to interact professionally with patients, case workers, social workers, hospital directors, and executives. The role demands multi-tasking abilities, excellent critical thinking skills, and the capacity to manage complexity and stress amidst the evolving needs of patients, families, and the health system. It is expected that individuals in this role will acquire the necessary job skills, knowledge, and team leadership through on-the-job and/or formal training to advance to the Financial Counselor II level.

Requirements

High school diploma or GED equivalent
At least 1 year of progressive responsibilities in a hospital or clinic financial counseling role with knowledge of pre-authorizations and reimbursement regulations pertaining to Medicare, Medi-Cal, and children’s health programs, with previous experience working in a metrics-based environment driven by financial counseling goals (such as screening rates and collection goals)
Demonstrates proficiency as applicable with Epic, insurance websites, POS payment systems, web-based screening tools
Knowledge and understanding of Microsoft applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
Strong knowledge of eligibility and enrollment requirements for Medicare, Medi-Cal, Workers Comp, Managed Care (HMO, PPO, POS, etc.), Children's Health Programs (CCS, GHPP, Healthy Families, etc.)
Experience resolving issues in financial reimbursement billing, utilization management and government programs
Prior experience calculating, communicating and educating patient’s on their financial responsibilities
Demonstrated communication, customer relations, and organizational skills
Ability to multi-task with attention to detail
Ability to complete work efficiently and problem solve independently
Ability to work well in a team environment

Nice To Haves

Bilingual preferred (English and Spanish)

Responsibilities

Finds solutions to help address patient financial needs in accordance with Stanford Health Care policies and procedures.
Determines financial clearance for a patient's visit or referral (pre-service or at time of service).
Checks eligibility and benefits, determines authorization requirements have been met.
Assesses "risk" of cases that have not been financially cleared/secured prior to service.
Clears low risk cases, escalates high-risk cases to coordinator or manager.
Contacts patient regarding steps required to clear their appointment for services including collecting a deposit for the patient’s financially responsible portion.
Quickly and accurately estimates a patient's out of pocket costs and prepares documents to present to the patient for payment.
Assures secure handling and accurate recording of payments collected at the point-of-service delivery.
Applies strong problem solving skills to help address the concerns and needs of the patients that the Financial Counselors serve.
Effectively communicates, both orally and written, to a variety of individuals including: patients, case workers, social workers, hospital directors and executives while maintaining utmost professionalism.
Maintains professional communication with various Patient Financial Clearance and Patient Access Services staff, medical center staff, physicians, guests, and patients regarding the services rendered at Stanford Health Care. Communication may consist of telephone correspondence or in person contact.
Must be multi-task orientated with excellent critical thinking skills and possess the ability to appropriately handle complexity and stress within the changing needs of the patients, families and the health system.
Meets weekly individual productivity goals and standards while following planned priorities as set by the Team Manager/Coordinator(s).
Performs other duties and responsibilities as assigned by the unit team manager or other PFC management personnel.
Performs the complete registration and admitting process from start to finish.