Patient Access Specialist

Mattapan Community Health Center; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 33,000 - 36,000; Full time

Job summary

Mattapan Community Health Center is seeking a Patient Access Specialist at our Mattapan, MA location. The role supports patient access, registration, scheduling, insurance verification, and financial assistance to ensure a welcoming and efficient patient experience.

The position requires strong customer service, attention to detail, and the ability to work in a fast-paced healthcare setting. Prior experience with EHR systems and insurance terminology is highly valued.

Qualifications

• Minimum 1 year of experience in a medical/clinical office environment or health/dental insurance industry.
• Strong customer service and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to interact with diverse patient populations.
• Solid computer literacy and multitasking ability.
• Understanding of medical insurance terminology and registration workflows.
• Familiarity with patient registration systems and eligibility verification.

Responsibilities

• Greet patients and visitors to provide a welcoming, patient-centered environment.
• Register, pre-register, check-in and check-out patients in the EHR with complete data.
• Collect and verify patient demographics, insurance eligibility, coverage, and financial information.
• Assist patients with insurance enrollment and coverage navigation.
• Identify eligibility for financial assistance, sliding fee discounts, and payment plans.
• Provide financial counseling on insurance coverage and patient financial responsibility.
• Collect copayments and other payments; document transactions.
• Address billing inquiries and route complex issues to appropriate staff.
• Manage patient messages and electronic communications promptly and accurately.
• Escalate patient, insurance, financial, or operational issues as needed.
• Maintain patient confidentiality and HIPAA compliance.
• Stay current on policies related to patient access, reimbursement, and collections.

Skills

Customer service

Communication

EHR proficiency

Insurance terminology

Education

High school diploma or GED

Tools

EHR systems

Insurance verification tools

Job description

Description

POSITION DESCRIPTION

POSITION: Patient Access Specialist

DEPARTMENT: Patient Services

LOCATION: 1575 Blue Hill Avenue, Mattapan, MA 02126

REPORTS TO: Patient Service M Accessanager

TYPE: Full-Time

SALARY: $24.00 – $26.39 per hour

Position Summary

The Patient Access Specialist serves as a key point of contact for patients and families and is responsible for supporting a broad range of patient access and administrative functions throughout the Mattapan Community Health Center . This position combines customer service, registration, scheduling, insurance verification, financial assistance, and patient account support.

The Patient Access Specialist ensures that patients receive welcoming and efficient experience while maintaining accurate patient information, supporting access to care, assisting patients with insurance and financial options, and facilitating timely communication between patients and Health Center departments.

This position requires strong customer service, attention to detail, sound judgment, confidentiality, and the ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, team-oriented healthcare environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Provides a welcoming and professional patient experience by greeting patients and visitors, responding to questions and concerns, and maintaining a respectful, patient-centered environment.
• Performs patient registration, pre-registration, check-in, and check-out, including accurately arriving patients in the EHR and ensuring all required information is complete.
• Collects and verifies patient demographics, insurance eligibility, coverage, and financial information and maintains accurate information in the EHR and other applicable systems.
• Assists patients with insurance enrollment and coverage navigation, including identifying available options and connecting patients with appropriate resources.
• Screens uninsured, underinsured, and self-pay patients to identify eligibility for financial assistance, sliding fee discounts, insurance programs, payment plans, and other available resources.
• Provides financial counseling to patients and families regarding insurance coverage, patient financial responsibility, financial assistance, payment options, and Mattapan Community Health Center policies.
• Collects copayments, initial sliding fee payments, self-pay balances, and other required patient payments and appropriately documents all transactions.
• Responds to patient billing and financial inquiries and refers complex billing, insurance, or Revenue Cycle issues to the appropriate staff for resolution.
• Manages patient-related in basket messages and other electronic communications in a timely and accurate manner.
• Uses sound judgment to identify and **escalate** patient, insurance, financial, or operational issues to the appropriate staff to ensure timely resolution.
• Maintains patient confidentiality and complies with HIPAA and all Mattapan Community Health Center policies, procedures, financial assistance requirements, and applicable regulations.
• Maintains current knowledge of policies and procedures related to patient access, customer service, reimbursement, insurance, financial assistance, and patient collections.

Requirements

• High school diploma or GED required.
• A minimum of 1 year of experience in a medical/clinical office environment or Health or Dental insurance industry required.
• Previous customer service background required.
• Haitian Creole or Spanish preferred
• Excellent customer service and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to interact with varied patient population.
• Solid computer literacy; ability to multitask, organize and prioritize one’s own work.
• Solid understanding of medical insurance terminology.
• Previous experience and knowledge of Community Health Center Or Hospital patient registration systems, insurance eligibility verification systems ( i.e. MMIS, WebMD, Trizetto, NEHEN).
• Solid knowledge of insurance plans, concepts and terms.
• Expected to stay abreast of scheduling rules, health care insurance changes and referral requirements.
• Ability to quickly learn new systems and tasks; work as a team member and independently.