Patient Access Specialist - Part Time - Night

Hackensack Meridian Health•Perth Amboy, NJ

1d•$26

About The Position

The Patient Access Specialist performs inpatient and outpatient patient access functions in an assigned area or hospital within Hackensack Meridian Health’s Patient Access Services Department. The role conducts patient interviews, verifies identity and demographics, gathers required consents and regulatory forms, and screens insurance coverage and coordination of benefits. It also supports scheduling, bed planning, preregistration, registration, insurance verification, pre-certification, point-of-service collections, and financial clearance under the direction of department leadership. The specialist follows Medical Center quality standards, applicable regulations, and departmental workflows while maintaining a positive patient experience. The position works across Patient Access areas as needed and may rotate shifts. It involves frequent patient and visitor interaction in person and by phone, coordination with physicians’ offices and payers, and use of Epic and payer websites to support accurate registration, authorizations, coverage verification, and payment processing. The role requires weekend and holiday availability.

Requirements

High school diploma, GED, or GED-equivalent program.
Ability to work rotating schedules or shifts based on departmental needs.
Good written and verbal communication skills.
Customer-service orientation.
Basic knowledge of medical terminology.
Proficient computer skills, which may include Microsoft Office and/or Google Suite.
Ability to work every other weekend.
Ability to work three out of six holidays.
Successfully complete EPIC Cadence and Prelude training and pass the assessment within 30 days after network access is granted.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree and/or related experience.
At least one year of experience in a hospital setting.
Patient financial services experience in a professional or hospital setting.
Prior patient registration or insurance verification experience.
Excellent analytical, written and verbal communication, and interpersonal skills.
Proficient medical terminology knowledge.
Knowledge of insurance specifications, ICD-10, and CPT-4 codes.
Bilingual ability, such as Spanish or Korean.
Experience with EPIC HB, Cadence, and Prelude.

Responsibilities

Greet patients and visitors promptly and courteously in person and by phone; address questions and resolve issues professionally.
Carry out scheduling, preregistration, pre-certification, referral procurement, and insurance verification procedures for assigned outpatient services.
Verify patient identity and demographics, prevent duplicate medical record numbers, and check patients in while tracking location and processing times.
Ensure regulatory and consent forms are completed and signed, and maintain compliance with applicable federal and state requirements.
Perform bed-planning functions, including reservations, preregistration, bed assignment, prioritization, and confirming the appropriate unit, patient status, and level of care.
Initiate and review real-time eligibility queries, verify insurance benefits and coverage, confirm plan codes and coordination of benefits, and complete Medicare Secondary Payer Questionnaires.
Determine patients’ out-of-pocket responsibility using the EPIC Financial Estimator, explain financial responsibilities and available resources, and collect payments when appropriate.
Verify pre-authorization requirements and coordinate with referring physicians’ offices and payers to ensure authorizations are obtained before scheduled services.
Submit treatment and procedure information promptly, ensure registration diagnosis data is accurate and meets medical necessity criteria, and notify payers of admissions in a timely manner.
Support financial clearance according to policy, resolve coverage issues, escalate complications, and refer patients to Financial Counselors when appropriate.
Process accepted payments accurately, reconcile cash drawers or shift transactions, deposit cash and checks, and provide receipts or service estimates.
Complete preregistration in Epic, clear required checklists, and set account status to “Confirmed pre-reg.”
Contact patients and physicians’ offices regarding Pre-Admission Testing scheduling, and obtain, type, process, copy, file, and fax patient records and scheduling information.
Manually register patients during system downtime and follow registration input procedures when systems are restored.
Complete assigned work queue accounts efficiently, scan documents and correspondence, monitor email for workflow updates, and meet daily productivity and process standards.
Coordinate daily Patient Access activities and adapt communication and service to patients’ age, culture, language, literacy, and accessibility needs.
Work in Patient Access areas throughout the hospital and rotate shifts as needed; perform other duties and projects as assigned.
Adhere to HMH organizational competencies, standards of behavior, departmental policies, and patient financial responsibility and collection policies.