Director, Patient Access Services

University of California - Los Angeles Health; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 144,000 - 342,000; Full time

Job summary

University of California - Los Angeles Health seeks a Director of Patient Access Services to oversee admission, registration, insurance verification, and financial clearance across inpatient, outpatient, and emergency settings. You will lead a large, multi-site team and manage a $10M budget to improve access, throughput, and patient experience.

You will partner with Revenue Cycle, IT, Finance, and clinical operations to implement automation, monitor KPIs, and drive regulatory compliance, change

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in healthcare administration or related field.
• 12+ years in hospital-based patient access or revenue cycle.
• 7+ years leading large, multi-site patient access teams.
• 3+ years leading automation or technology projects in patient access.
• Strong knowledge of healthcare regulations and payer rules.
• Experience with Epic EHR, ADT, and reporting.
• Proven financial acumen with budgets and forecasts.

Responsibilities

• Lead enterprise patient access operations across registration, admitting, and pre-registration.
• Oversee insurance verification, financial counseling, and financial clearance.
• Develop and implement staffing plans, policies, and performance standards.
• Advance digital front-door initiatives, automation, and technology projects.
• Monitor KPIs and translate data into operational improvements.
• Ensure compliance with EMTALA, No Surprises Act, CMS, and HIPAA.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to improve workflows and capacity.
• Provide executive leadership for access transformation and change management.

Skills

Leadership

Budgeting

Project management

Data analysis

Communication

Change management

Strategic planning

Education

Bachelor's degree in healthcare administration or related field

Master's degree in healthcare administration (preferred)

Tools

Epic EHR

ADT

Reporting tools

Job description

Patient Access Services

Lead enterprise-wide patient access operations that support
timely care access, strong revenue cycle performance, and a positive patient
experience. As the Director of Patient Access Services, you will oversee
admission, registration, pre-registration, insurance verification, financial
counseling, and financial clearance functions across inpatient, outpatient, and
emergency settings. This role provides leadership for a large, multi-site team
and manages a $10M budget while partnering with Revenue Cycle, clinical
operations, IT, Finance, Care Coordination, Managed Care, and other health
system leaders to improve access, throughput, compliance, and financial
outcomes.

In this role, you will:

• Lead enterprise patient access operations across
  registration, admitting, pre-registration, insurance verification, financial
  counseling, and financial clearance.
• Develop and implement strategies, policies, staffing plans, and performance
  standards to improve access, clean claims, authorization accuracy, the patient
  experience, and preventable balance write-offs and adjustments.
• Advance digital front-door, automation, and technology initiatives that
  improve efficiency, accuracy, and operational performance.
• Monitor KPIs and translate data into actionable operational and financial
  improvements for executive leadership.
• Oversee daily operations, department budget, expense review, and monthly
  reporting for patient access functions.
• Ensure compliance with EMTALA, the No Surprises Act, CMS requirements, HIPAA,
  payer rules, and other patient access regulations.
• Partner with audit and compliance teams to mitigate risk, address findings,
  and strengthen internal controls.
• Recruit, mentor, and develop leaders and staff while fostering
  accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate with clinical departments, IT, Finance, Care Coordination, FPG,
  Transfer Center, and Managed Care teams to improve workflows and resolve access
  barriers.
• Serve as an executive leader for patient access transformation, surge
  planning, emergency preparedness, system capacity initiatives, and change
  management efforts.

Salary Range:

$144,400 to $341,800 annually

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree in healthcare administration, business,
  or a related field.
• 12 or more years of progressive experience in hospital-based patient access
  or revenue cycle operations.
• 7 or more years of leadership experience overseeing hospital patient access
  services, including large, multi-site teams.
• 3 or more years of experience leading projects that implement automation or
  technology enhancements within patient access areas.
• Deep understanding of state and federal regulations impacting patient access
  functions.
• Deep understanding of hospital billing, payer contracting, and reimbursement
  methodologies.
• Strong knowledge of Epic electronic health records, ADT functionality, and
  reporting.
• Extensive knowledge of delegated payment models and authorization
  requirements.
• Strong financial and analytical skills to manage budgets, forecasts,
  performance metrics, and operational outcomes.
• Ability to lead teams, drive performance improvement, manage change, and
  communicate effectively across clinical, financial, and operational partners.

Preferred

• Master's degree in healthcare administration, public
  health, business, or a related field.
• Certification through NAHAM, HFMA, or AAHAM is preferred.
• Lean Six Sigma or Project Management Professional certification is preferred.