PRIOR AUTHORIZATION MANAGER
Texas Institute for Neurological Disorders / US Neurology Associates
Department: Revenue Cycle / Operations
Schedule: Full-Time, Monday–Friday
Location: On-Site, Plano / Frisco
The Prior Authorization Manager is responsible for bringing the prior authorization function in-house and building a high-performing team that supports a multi-site outpatient neurology practice. This leader will assess and redesign current outsourced workflows, establish standardized processes and service levels, and oversee end-to-end authorization activity for physician visits, diagnostic testing, procedures, infusion therapies, and ancillary services.
This is a hands-on, build-oriented leadership role. The Manager must bring deep prior authorization expertise, strong payer knowledge, and meaningful experience leading teams in complex, high-volume specialty care environments. Neurology and infusion authorization experience are critical to success.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Function Buildout & Team Leadership
- Lead the transition of prior authorization work from outsourced and offshore resources to an internal USNA team.
- Assess current-state workflows, define the future-state operating model, and implement standardized policies, procedures, escalation paths, and service-level expectations.
- Build, train, coach, and manage a team of prior authorization representatives; establish clear productivity, quality, and turnaround-time expectations.
- Develop staffing plans and workload allocation models that support growth across multiple clinic locations and service lines.
- Create a culture of accountability, urgency, accuracy, and proactive communication.
Prior Authorization Operations
- Oversee end-to-end prior authorization for office visits, MRIs, EMG, EEG, sleep studies, infusions, Botox and other injections, and additional diagnostic and ancillary services.
- Ensure authorizations are initiated, tracked, escalated, renewed, and closed within payer-required and internal timelines.
- Own denial and appeal workflows, including root-cause analysis, clinical documentation coordination, peer-to-peer support, and trend reporting.
- Protect patient access and clinic schedules by ensuring required authorizations are verified before services are delivered.
- Serve as the escalation point for urgent, complex, or high-value authorization cases, particularly infusion therapies.
Payer, Provider & Cross-Functional Partnership
- Maintain strong working knowledge of commercial, Medicare, Medicare Advantage, Medicaid managed care, and specialty payer requirements.
- Partner closely with physicians, clinical teams, scheduling, front desk, revenue cycle, and operations leadership to resolve authorization barriers.
- Serve as the internal subject matter expert on payer requirements, medical necessity documentation, and authorization best practices.
- Build productive relationships with payer representatives and escalation teams to improve approval rates and turnaround times.
Reporting & Continuous Improvement
- Establish dashboards and reporting for queue volume, turnaround time, approval and denial rates, appeal outcomes, productivity, and aging.
- Use data to identify bottlenecks, payer trends, staffing needs, and opportunities to improve patient access and revenue capture.
- Maintain complete and accurate authorization documentation in eClinicalWorks and payer portals.
- Ensure compliance with HIPAA, payer rules, and organizational policies.
QUALIFICATIONS
Required
- Minimum 7 years of prior authorization experience in an outpatient specialty healthcare setting.
- Minimum 5 years of direct team leadership or management experience in prior authorization, patient access, or a closely related function.
- Demonstrated experience building, restructuring, or insourcing a prior authorization function.
- Deep experience with high-volume, complex authorizations and payer escalation processes.
- Strong knowledge of commercial, Medicare, Medicare Advantage, and Medicaid managed care requirements.
- Experience with eClinicalWorks or a comparable EMR/practice management platform and major payer portals.
- Strong operational judgment, analytical skills, and ability to lead through ambiguity in a growth-stage environment.
Preferred
- Prior authorization leadership experience in neurology and infusion services.
- Experience with EMG, EEG, MRI, Botox, sleep studies, and other neurology-related services.
- Experience supporting a multi-site specialty practice in the Dallas-Fort Worth market.
- CPAR, CRCR, or comparable patient access/revenue cycle certification.
SUCCESS FACTORS
- Successful transition of prior authorization operations in-house with minimal disruption to patients and clinics.
- Improved authorization turnaround time, approval rate, and schedule clearance.
- Clear team structure, standardized workflows, and reliable performance reporting.
- Reduced authorization-related denials, cancellations, and lost revenue.
COMPENSATION & BENEFITS
Salary Range: Commensurate with experience
Benefits: Medical, dental, vision, PTO, and 401(k)
Employment Type: Full-Time
Texas Institute for Neurological Disorders / US Neurology Associates is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.