Patient Account Representative (Per Diem)

Bakersfield Behavioral Healthcare Hospital; Bakersfield (CA); On-site; USD 46,000 - 50,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid Time Off

Tuition Reimbursement

Life Insurance

Medical Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

401k Retirement Plan

Employee Assistance Program

Job summary

Bakersfield Behavioral Healthcare Hospital in Bakersfield, CA seeks a Patient Account Representative to verify insurance coverage and assist patients with payment arrangements. You will work closely with Case Management to determine authorization needs and ensure accurate data entry into the billing system.

The role requires strong customer service, basic medical billing exposure, CPR, and the ability to communicate clearly with patients and insurers.

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or Equivalent is required or equivalent.
• Current CPR certification is required.
• At least 1 year of hospital experience preferred.
• Handle-With-Care training during orientation.
• Medical billing certification is preferred but not required.

Responsibilities

• Verify information for accurate eligibility and benefits by contacting patients directly.
• Call insurance companies to verify and complete all information and benefits.
• Check if authorization is required for services.
• Enter patient insurance data into financial systems with correct payer and class.
• Document findings and contact patients with estimated payment amounts.
• Calculate co-pay and estimated co-insurance per payer contracts.
• Familiar with payer guidelines including Medicare/Medicaid and other gov’t contracts.
• Experience with AR, billing or customer service is a plus.

Skills

Customer service

Communication

Empathy

Education

High School Diploma or Equivalent

CPR Certification

Medical Billing Certification (preferred)

Tools

Insurance verification software

Job description

About Us
Bakersfield Behavioral Healthcare Hospital, located in Bakersfield, California, is an acute psychiatric and behavioral 90 bed facility situated on 8.8 acres.

About Us
Bakersfield Behavioral Healthcare Hospital, located in Bakersfield, California, is an acute psychiatric and behavioral 90 bed facility situated on 8.8 acres.
We offer inpatient and outpatient services for children, adolescents and adults needing mental/behavioral health, chemical dependency; and co-occurring disorders treatment through our medically supervised detoxification.
Within our Workplace Community, BBHH is striving daily to be one of the BEST PLACES TO WORK not just here in Kern County, but throughout the Behavioral Healthcare Community.
By offering amazing benefits, encouraging individual growth and development, and incorporating our CARES values system into our daily operations, we are creating a workplace culture where people enjoy coming to work each day.
BBHH CARES about your experience as a candidate and we encourage you to apply to our open positions.
Compassion
Acceptance
Respect
Empowerment
Sincerity
Job Summary
The Patient Account Rep / must possess knowledge of the various payers i.e. commercial, Managed care, government plans and State programs, i.e. Medi-Cal/Medicaid and CCS. The Patient Account Rep is responsible for verifying patient insurance coverage, to ensure coverage by an individual's provider. He/she is responsible for entering data in an accurate manner, as it is his/her job to update patient benefit information in the insurance system and verify that existing information is accurate. This position requires the individual to spend extensive amounts of time on the phone and /or insurance companies' websites to ensure that all benefits have been verified for determination of authorization requirements.
This position also serves as a valuable resource to patients, providing them with pertinent information regarding their coverage. This position works with patients to explain coverage amounts provided by their insurance policy. This position also assist patients with payment arrangement plans for services that are not covered by their insurance companies and/or for those self-pay patients. Calculates and collects cash payments by using Medicare DRG/APC reimbursement table. Responsible for financially counseling patients at hospital bedside.
Work closely with Case Management (UR) daily in regards to patient status changes; whether this would include patient type or insurance notification or insurance coverage. Must have excellent customer service and communication skills with the ability to effectively calm patients and be able to deal with distressed and/or agitated patients and their families.
Responsibilities:

• Verify that sufficient information is available for accurate verification and eligibility. This step may require direct contact with the patient
• Call insurance companies and to verify and complete all insurance information and benefits
• Check if authorization is require
• Enter the patient insurance information into patient financial system ensuring the selection is the appropriate payer and associated financial class
• goal for each patient's insurance verification is complete and accurate. The insurance verifier will document the findings in the patient account and will contact the patient with either estimated co-insurance, co-pay and or deductible amounts due
• Calculate co-pay, and estimated co-insurance due from patients per the individual payer contract per the individual payer contract and plan as applicable
• Be familiar with individual payer guidelines and the process of collecting over the counter payments/deductibles/copay/co-insurance. Knowledge of payer contracts including Medicare, Medicaid and other government contracts and guidelines.
• A/R, billing, insurance verification or customer service experience preferred

The Patient Account Rep position starts at $23/per hour for all newly-hired persons.
Requirements
WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR:
Simply put: HUMANS WHO CARE
Though we do need to meet some minimum requirements for the position such a High School Diploma or Equivalent, we're really looking for people who bring their HEART to work.
Our patients, our community, and our co-workers RELY on us to be committed to their wellness,
Through prevention, intervention, treatment, and education, we can and we will make a difference not just here in Bakersfield, but throughout our extended communities.
You should have a current CPR certification when you apply or obtain certification prior to your start date.
You will preferably have at least one year of experience in a hospital environment.
Additionally, you'll complete a "Handle-With-Care" Physical Restraint Technique Training during your orientation.
Ideally, someone with at least 2 years of medical billing and certification in a similar field will apply.
BBHH encourages ALL qualified applicants to apply and will consider an equivalent combination of education and experience to be acceptable for this role.
BenefitsBakersfield Behavioral Healthcare Hospital is proud to offer a suite of benefits to those who join our workplace community.

• Benefits eligibility varies based on employment status (full-time, part-time, per diem, temporary, etc.)

Some of the benefits you can expect as a Full-Time employee include:

• Paid Time Off
• over THREE WEEKS of Paid Time Off in your first year!!!
• TUITION REIMBURSEMENT!
• Life Insurance
• Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Medical Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Pet Insurance
• Accident Insurance
• 401k Retirement Plan
• Discounted Meals
• Employee Assistance Program