PAS Specialist III WMCG

Wellstar Health System•Columbia County Medical Center Hospital, NY

About The Position

The Patient Access Specialist III schedules outpatient procedures and manages scheduling requests from patients and physician offices through phone, fax, paper requisitions, and other accepted communication methods. The role gathers patient, guarantor, and insurance information; enters it into health information systems; obtains required signatures; and provides patients with visit-specific preparation information. The specialist answers and triages patient questions, supports registration and financial processes, and helps maintain accurate patient records and timely care coordination. Work responsibilities may change in response to business needs. The PAS Specialist III also monitors order transcription and scanning, assists with missing diagnostic and pathology reports and medical-record requests, supports onboarding, and may float to other locations. In the Schedistrar I role, the specialist serves as a preceptor and mentor, meeting specified accuracy, productivity, conduct, and certification expectations. Financial duties include verifying insurance and benefits, estimating and collecting self-pay balances, explaining financial policies, documenting patient and guarantor interactions, assessing potential eligibility for assistance programs, and coordinating financial counseling with relevant hospital departments. The specialist also supports customer service, resolves account issues and payor denials, and follows applicable regulations, policies, and procedures. The role is expected to demonstrate Wellstar’s commitment to service excellence, professionalism, accuracy, and respectful coordination with patients, families, and colleagues.

Requirements

High school diploma or GED required; an associate degree is preferred.
At least one year of experience in Patient Access Services, Practice Operations, or Patient Financial Services; a bachelor's degree or higher may substitute for experience.
One of the following certifications: CHAA, CPAR, CRCR, or CRCR-P. CRCR-P must be completed within 120 days; certifications are required upon hire unless otherwise stated.
Effective written and verbal communication skills for communicating with members of the healthcare team.
High attention to detail, self-direction, and a positive attitude.
Effective problem-solving and critical-thinking skills.
Typing or data-entry competency of at least 40 words per minute.
Cash handling and balancing skills.
Professionalism, effective communication, and active listening skills.
Complete PAS Operations Onboarding Training and achieve the required passing score on the final exam within 45 days of hire.
For preceptor duties, maintain the required registration accuracy rate based on individual QA audits or Epic reports, meet minimum productivity requirements, have no corrective disciplinary action in the preceding 12 months, and be willing and able to orient new patient access personnel and students.
Maintain required certifications by obtaining continuing education units and submitting them to the certifying board on time.

Nice To Haves

Associate degree preferred.
Working knowledge of patient registration systems.
Intermediate Microsoft Office Suite skills.
Epic experience.
After successfully completing the PAS onboarding exam, eligibility to progress through enrollment in the WHS Enterprise Membership–HFMA Certification program, subject to PAS leadership approval.

Responsibilities

Schedule outpatient procedures for departments within the assigned scope.
Handle appointment requests and rescheduling or cancellation requests received through phone, fax, paper requisitions, and other accepted communication methods.
Gather and enter patient demographic, guarantor, and insurance information in registration systems, and obtain required signatures and payer-specific forms.
Use medical terminology to determine whether appointment requests are consistent with orders.
Inform patients and providers about missing authorizations or procedures flagged as not medically necessary, including potential need for a non-covered-services waiver.
Provide price estimates or route questions about expected out-of-pocket costs to the appropriate resource.
Triage and process appointment requests according to department standards, communicating accurate information to care providers and healthcare team members.
Identify, report, and prevent duplicate patient records, billing accounts, and medical records.
Use multiple information systems and answer basic financial questions, referring patients to Patient Financial Services when appropriate.
Follow applicable regulations, policies, and procedures, and report safety and customer concerns to management.
Review and monitor order transcription and scanning; assist with missing diagnostic and pathology reports and coordination-of-care medical record requests.
Assist with onboarding new team members, serve as a department preceptor and mentor, and float to other locations as needed.
Attempt to collect estimated self-pay balances, make financial arrangements, complete financial evaluations, and document collection efforts and patient or guarantor interactions.
Identify patients with inadequate insurance, assess potential ability to pay and eligibility for financial assistance, and refer patients to outside funding resources as needed.
Contact scheduled patients to obtain pre-admission information, explain financial policies, estimate self-pay balances, and seek payment commitments.
Interview inpatients and selected self-pay outpatients to verify insurance and financial information, explain policies, and collect estimated balances.
Coordinate financial counseling with Admitting, registration teams, Utilization Review, Nursing, Social Services, and Patient Financial Services.
Verify insurance coverage and benefits; complete appropriate WorkQueue issues and identify and resolve payor denials as indicated.
Report self-pay collection results and provide feedback to PAS management concerning collection and data integrity issues.
Greet guests professionally, answer incoming calls, follow through on requests, handle difficult situations tactfully, and maintain courteous working relationships.
Receive patient valuables for safekeeping in the hospital safe.
Observe work hours, provide appropriate notice of absences or schedule changes, attend requested meetings, and complete mandatory training.
Comply with Wellstar policies, standards of work, and code of conduct, and perform other assigned duties.
Maintain required registration accuracy and productivity, have no corrective disciplinary action in the preceding 12 months, and maintain required certifications and continuing education.