Senior Patient Access Specialist - St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital

Bon Secours Mercy Health•Youngstown, OH

About The Position

The Senior Patient Access Specialist performs admitting duties for patients receiving services at Mercy Health while meeting the ministry’s mission, organizational policies, and regulatory requirements. The role may also include training, scheduling, quality auditing, and department on-call support. The position serves as the department’s SMART and provides compassionate, high-quality customer service. The specialist manages patient access and revenue cycle activities across emergency, outpatient, and inpatient settings. This includes registering and preregistering patients, collecting demographic and insurance information, reviewing eligibility and benefits, processing physician orders, screening medical necessity, explaining and distributing required forms, obtaining signatures, and collecting point-of-service payments. The role also audits accounts, supports clean claims and billing processes, develops training materials, and prepares staff schedules for leadership approval. This is a full-time, 40-hour-per-week collective bargaining unit position with rotating weekends and holidays, all shifts, and on-call responsibilities. On-call duties may require reporting to work at unscheduled times to address staffing needs. Working conditions may include high stress, fluctuating workloads, noise, bright lights, interruptions, periods of working alone, and possible exposure to physical altercations, verbal abuse, hazardous substances, body fluids, or adverse weather. Universal precautions and personal protective equipment are required.

Requirements

High school diploma or GED.
Two to three years of experience in patient access or a leadership role.
Typing speed of 45 words per minute.
Understanding of revenue cycle processes, including admissions, billing, payments, and denials.
Comprehensive knowledge of patient insurance processes for obtaining authorizations and verifying benefits.
Knowledge of health insurance requirements.
Knowledge of medical terminology, CPT codes, or procedure codes.
Ability to analyze data or information and perform scheduling.
Attention to detail, critical thinking, communication, teamwork, conflict resolution, active listening, and relationship-building skills.
Ability to work weekends, holidays, and on-call shifts.
Ability to provide care appropriate to the age and needs of patients served, as described in departmental policies and procedures.
Ability to follow infection-control policies and use universal precautions and personal protective equipment.

Nice To Haves

Certified Revenue Cycle Representative (CRCR) certification from the Healthcare Financial Management Association.
Associate degree in healthcare administration, business administration, or a related field.

Responsibilities

Perform admitting and patient access duties for patients receiving Mercy Health services.
Assign accurate medical record numbers and complete medical necessity and compliance checks.
Provide patient instructions and collect demographic, insurance, and other required information.
Receive and process physician orders using an overlay tool.
Provide excellent, compassionate customer service and serve as the department’s SMART.
Operate the telephone switchboard to relay incoming, outgoing, and inter-office calls as applicable.
Use quality auditing and reporting systems to identify and ensure correction of accounts, including accounts for other employees, departments, and facilities.
Develop training materials and programs for new department hires and provide continuing education to associates in revenue cycle areas.
Develop patient access staff schedules and submit them to leadership for final approval.
Provide department on-call and after-hours support, including reporting to work at unscheduled times to cover staffing issues.
Collect point-of-service payments in emergency, outpatient, and inpatient settings, including past-due balances, and offer payment plan options.
Conduct account audits, ensure forms are completed accurately and on time, and provide statistical data to Patient Access leadership.
Meet assigned point-of-service goals.
Explain general consent for treatment forms, obtain required signatures, and record the witness’s name.
Explain and distribute patient education documents and required forms, including the Important Message from Medicare, Observation Forms, and consent forms.
Review insurance eligibility responses, select applicable insurance plan codes, and enter benefit data to support collections and billing.
Pre-register patient accounts and make inbound or outbound calls to obtain patient, demographic, and insurance information.
Screen medical necessity using Advanced Beneficiary Notice software, inform Medicare patients of possible nonpayment, and distribute ABNs when appropriate.
Distribute and document other designated forms and pamphlets.
Follow Mercy Health policies, regulatory requirements, and infection-control procedures, including universal precautions and use of personal protective equipment.
Perform other job-related duties as required, subject to reasonable accommodation.

Benefits

Competitive pay, incentives, and referral bonuses.
403(b) plan with employer contributions when eligible.
Medical, dental, vision, and prescription coverage.
Health savings account and flexible spending account options.
Life insurance.
Mental health resources and discounts.
Paid time off.
Parental and FMLA leave.
Short- and long-term disability.
Backup care for children and elders.
Tuition assistance.
Professional development and continuing education support. Benefits may vary by market and employment status.