PATIENT SERVICES REPRESENTATIVE I - Communication Center

University of Texas - Rio Grande Valley; Edinburg (TX); On-site; USD 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is seeking a Patient Services Representative I for the CommunicationCenter in Harlingen, Texas. You will greet and register patients, answer calls, schedule appointments, and explain billing processes to patients, ensuring HIPAA privacy and accurate insurance data.

The role requires at least a high school diploma, basic computer skills, and prior front-office or customer service experience.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent required.
• Bi-lingual English/Spanish preferred.
• Completion of Medical Office Specialist certificate program or Medical Administrative Assistant or closely related is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Acts as the first point of contact for patients in the clinical setting and provides high-level customer service consistently to both internal and external customers.
• Accurately and completely registers patients by obtaining patient demographic information, while maintaining patient confidentiality in accordance with HIPAA guidelines.
• Responsible for scheduling, rescheduling, and cancelling all patient appointments as needed and when appropriate to maximize patient flow and clinic efficiency.
• Responsible for answering incoming calls in a professional, timely manner, ensuring caller's needs are met and accurate information is relayed and obtained.
• Completes reminder calls as needed; greets incoming patients and visitors in person or on the telephone and promotes active listening responsively to patient concerns or complaints and provides or seeks appropriate remedies while promoting quality care.
• Performs all necessary daily check-in and checkout tasks as required for reconciliation purposes, including next day preparation of charts, deposit reconciliation, and charge entry.
• Maintains patient confidentiality regarding access to patient and other clinical information via email, computer, fax, and mail.
• Verifies patient insurance eligibility and benefits through various payers, including commercial insurances, Medicaid, and Medicare.
• Obtains the necessary prior authorizations, referrals, and other insurance documentation needed for all visits as required by the insurance carrier.
• Performs all Time-of-Service collections including collecting copays, deductibles, and outstanding balances due on the account.
• Educates the patient/responsible parties regarding billing processes, financial responsibilities, third party benefit information and, provides estimates of out-of-pocket costs to patients.
• Establishes payment plans for outstanding balances and prepayment plans for future services; refers patients to Financial Counselors and screens for charity programs when appropriate.
• Answers frequently asked questions regarding clinic services and appointment related information and is seen as a source of knowledge to both internal and external customers and knows when to scale questions and concerns.
• Demonstrates respectful, courteous, professional, and appropriate behavior that represents the core values of UT HealthRGV and supports the image, mission, and goals of the clinical enterprise.
• May be required to provide coverage at various clinical sites as needed.
• Performs other administrative duties as assigned.

Skills

Customer service

Phone etiquette

HIPAA compliance

Data entry

Multitasking

Education

High School Diploma or equivalent

Bi-lingual English/Spanish

Tools

EMR system

Microsoft Office

Job description

PATIENT SERVICES REPRESENTATIVE I - CommunicationCenter

Posting Number: SRGV9148

Number of Vacancies: 1

Location: Harlingen, Texas

Department: School of Medicine/ Revenue Cycle

FLSA: Non-Exempt

Scope of Job

Responsible for greeting and registering patients in a caring and warm manner, handle in-coming patient telephone calls, scheduling appointments, handling patient queries, collecting and obtaining accurate insurance information, and time of service collections as required.

Description of Duties

• Acts as the first point of contact for patients in the clinical setting and provides high-level customer service consistently to both internal and external customers, while upholding UT HealthRGV's mission, values, and promoting service lines.
• Accurately and completely registers patients by obtaining patient demographic information, while maintaining patient confidentiality in accordance with HIPAA guidelines.
• Responsible for scheduling, rescheduling, and cancelling all patient appointments as needed and when appropriate to maximize patient flow and clinic efficiency.
• Responsible for answering incoming calls in a professional, timely manner, ensuring caller's needs are met and accurate information is relayed and obtained.
• Completes reminder calls as needed; greets incoming patients and visitors in person or on the telephone and promotes active listening responsively to patient concerns or complaints and provides or seeks appropriate remedies while promoting quality care.
• Check's in and check's out patients through the appropriate appointment workflows, including verifying patient insurance eligibility, scanning all necessary identification into the EMR system, and ensuring completion and accuracy of patient registration forms.
• Performs all necessary daily check-in and checkout tasks as required for reconciliation purposes, including next day preparation of charts, deposit reconciliation, and charge entry.
• Maintains patient confidentiality regarding access to patient and other clinical information via email, computer, fax, and mail.
• Verifies patient insurance eligibility and benefits through various payers, including commercial insurances, Medicaid, and Medicare.
• Obtains the necessary prior authorizations, referrals, and other insurance documentation needed for all visits as required by the insurance carrier.
• Performs all Time-of-Service collections including collecting copays, deductibles, and outstanding balances due on the account.
• Educates the patient/responsible parties regarding billing processes, financial responsibilities, third party benefit information and, provides estimates of out-of-pocket costs to patients.
• Establishes payment plans for outstanding balances and prepayment plans for future services; refers patients to Financial Counselors and screens for charity programs when appropriate.
• Answers frequently asked questions regarding clinic services and appointment related information and is seen as a source of knowledge to both internal and external customers and knows when to scale questions and concerns.
• Demonstrates respectful, courteous, professional, and appropriate behavior that represents the core values of UT HealthRGV and supports the image, mission, and goals of the clinical enterprise.
• May be required to provide coverage at various clinical sites as needed.
• Performs other administrative duties as assigned.

Supervision Received

General supervision from assigned supervisor.

Supervision Given

May supervise assigned support staff.

Required Education

High School Diploma or equivalent.

Preferred Education

Bi-lingual (English/Spanish)

Licenses/Certifications

Preferred: Completion of Medical Office Specialist certificate program or Medical Administrative Assistant or closely related.

Required Experience

Six (6) months of medical front-office, and/or receptionistexperience in patient registration, scheduling, providing customer service, and/or insurance verification and eligibility experienceor two (2) years of direct customer service.

Preferred Experience

Previous experience with insurance verification and eligibility with scheduling in a high-volume environment. Experience obtained in healthcare setting.

Equipment

Use of standard office equipment. Exceptional computer experience and skills required. Intermediate level skill in Microsoft Office Suite, and ability to navigate an EMR system.

Working Conditions

Needs to be able to successfully perform all required duties. Office/Clinical Environment; some travel and weekend work may be required. May be exposed to airborne illnesses when encountering patients. Exerting up to 20 pounds of force frequently, and/or an negligible amount of force constantly to move objects. Must be able to sit for long periods of time. UTRGV is a distributed institution, which requires presence at multiple locations throughout the Rio Grande Valley.

Other

Tact, diplomacy, discretion, and confidentiality of medical information required in all matters.

Physical Capabilities

N/A

Employment Category

Full-Time

Minimum Salary

Commensurate with Experience

Posted Salary

Commensurate with Experience

Position Available Date

10/05/2026

Grant Funded Position

No

EEO Statement

It is the policy of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley to promote and ensure equal employment opportunities for all individuals without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information or protected veteran status. In accordance with the requirements of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, our University is committed to comply with all government requirements and ensures non-discrimination in its education programs and activities, including employment. We encourage women, minorities and differently abled persons to apply for employment positions of interest.

Additional Information

UTRGV is a distributed location institution and working location is subject to change based on need.

All UTRGV employees are required to have a criminal background check (CBC). Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Substitutions to the above requirements must have prior approval from the VP of Human Resources.