Reimbursement Assistant - Joint and Limb Preservation

MU Health Care; Columbia Township (MO); On-site; USD 26,000 - 41,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Paid time off

Retirement options

Tuition assistance

Employee discounts

Job summary

MU Health Care is seeking a Revenue Cycle Coordinator at the Missouri Orthopaedic Institute - Joint Preservation Center to support insurance authorizations and patient billing. The role includes handling authorizations, coordinating with care teams, and ensuring timely communication with patients about coverage and denials.

The ideal candidate has an associate degree in medical coding or related field with experience in healthcare revenue cycle and a willingness to learn across multiple

Qualifications

• Associate degree in medical coding, medical office technology or related field, or equivalent experience.
• Two years of medical experience and knowledge of medical terminology preferred.

Responsibilities

• Assist with insurance authorizations for orthopaedic procedures and appointments.
• Serve as primary contact for patients on authorizations, coverage and billing.
• Communicate status of authorizations and denials to minimize delays.
• Coordinate peer-to-peer reviews and patient appeals documentation.
• Monitor authorization and denial activity in systems for timely follow-up.
• Audit billing and denials and support process improvement across teams.
• Identify barriers and communicate trends to support program goals.
• Support patient scheduling, paperwork, and front-desk operations as needed.

Skills

Medical coding

Insurance authorization

Healthcare billing

Customer service

Education

Associate degree in medical coding or related field

Job description

Shift:Monday - Friday Days

Department: Missouri Orthopaedic Institute - Joint Preservation Center

* Base Pay Range: $19.25 - $30.23/hour, based on experience

ABOUT THE JOB

Revenue Cycle

• 1. Assist the Joint and Limb Preservation teams with insurance authorization processes for orthopaedic surgical procedures and outpatient psychology appointments, including submission, tracking, and follow-up as appropriate.
• 2. Serve as the primary point of contact for patients with questions regarding surgical authorizations, insurance coverage, and billing, coordinating with appropriate departments when additional assistance is needed.
• 3. Maintain timely communication with patients and members of the care team regarding the status of authorizations, peer-to-peer reviews, denials, and appeals to minimize delays in patient care.
• 4. Coordinate peer-to-peer reviews following insurance denials and assist with drafting and submitting patient appeal letters and supporting documentation.
• 5. Monitor and document authorization and denial activity in applicable systems to ensure accurate and timely follow-up.
• 6. Audit billing and denial information and collaborate with Revenue Cycle and clinical teams to investigate and resolve post-service denials and other insurance-related barriers.
• 7. Identify recurring authorization, coverage, or billing barriers and communicate trends to the Joint and Limb Preservation teams to support process improvement.

Clinical Support

• 1. Support the Joint and Limb Preservation teams with patient scheduling, paperwork, patient inquiries, operating room scheduling, and other clinical and administrative needs.
• 2. Provide backup administrative coverage for MU Joint Health Program classes and front-desk operations as needed.
• 3. Participate actively in Joint and Limb Preservation team meetings, communicating patient access, authorization, scheduling, and other barriers that may affect timely care.
• 4. Facilitate communication among patients, clinical staff, and administrative teams to help coordinate care and resolve barriers throughout the patient's care pathway.

Research and Administrative Support

• 1. Assist with accurate and timely data entry used to track patients, clinical activities, and outcomes within the center.
• 2. Complete required human-subjects research and IRB-related training and serve as a backup research team member for patient consent and/or research visit activities, as permitted by study protocols.
• 3. Assist with scheduling research-only visits, imaging, and other study-related activities.
• 4. Conduct patient outreach and reminders related to research participation, clinical follow-up, and completion of patient-reported outcome measures.
• 5. Collaborate with clinical and research team members to support integration of research activities into routine clinical workflows.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate will bring a growth mindset, strong communication and organizational skills, persistence, a solution-oriented approach, and a willingness to learn and contribute across multiple areas of the program. Experience with healthcare revenue cycle, insurance authorization, or clinical operations is preferred but not required.

The Joint and Limb Preservation programs function as highly integrated, collaborative teams in which every team member has an opportunity to directly contribute to patient care and program improvement. This position will serve as a key resource for revenue-cycle and insurance-related processes, helping patients navigate authorization requirements and working proactively with patients, clinicians, and administrative teams to identify and resolve barriers to care. The successful candidate will be comfortable taking ownership of problems, communicating across disciplines, and learning new processes as the needs of the program evolve.

ABOUT MU HEALTH CARE

MU Health Care is proud to be named one of Forbes' Best-in-State Employers seven years in a row, and that's largely a result of the incredible culture and team we've built. At MU Health Care, we have an inspired, hard-working and collaborative environment driven by our mission to save and improve lives. Here, we believe anything is possible and rally around solutions. We celebrate innovation and offer opportunities to be a part of something bigger - to have a voice and role in the work that is serving our community and changing the field of medicine.

Our academic health system - the only in mid-Missouri - is home to seven hospitals, including the region's only Level 1 Trauma Center and region's only Children's Hospital, as well as over 90 specialty clinics. Here you can define your career among our many clinical and nonclinical positions - with growth, opportunity and support every step of the way.

Learn more about MU Health Care.

Learn more about living in mid-Missouri.

EMPLOYEE BENEFITS

• * Health, vision and dental insurance coverage starting day one
• * Generous paid leave and paid time off, including nine holidays
• * Multiple retirement options, including 100% matching up to 8%and full vesting in three years
• * Tuition assistance for employees (75%) and immediate family members (50%)
• * Discounts on cell phone plans, rental cars, gyms, hotels and more
• * See a comprehensive list of benefits here.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

An associate degree in medical coding, medical office technology or other medical related area, or an equivalent combination of education and experience from which comparable knowledge and abilities can be acquired is necessary.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

Two years of medical related experience with knowledge of medical terminology, one of which in medical coding experience, is preferred.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met with or without reasonable accommodation. The performance of these physical demands is an essential function of the job. The employee may be required ambulate, remain in a stationary position and position self to reach and/or move objects above the shoulders and below the knees. The employee may be required to move objects up to 10 lbs.

Equal Employment Opportunity

The University of Missouri is an Equal Opportunity Employer.