Erie County is an Equal Opportunity Employer and committed to workplace diversity.

Residence Requirements:

THERE ARE NO RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATION IN THIS EXAMINATION. There is one anticipated vacancy at the Erie County Medical Center Corporation. 

A promotion examination will be held at the same time as this examination. The list resulting from the promotion examination will be used first but appointments from this open competitive examination are anticipated. Use of the list may be suspended after it is one year old for any position which it is practical to fill through a new promotion examination.

Examples of Duties:

A Patient Financial Services Representative performs hospital or professional billing functions, collections and accounting for monies received, and denials prevention analysis in the Hospital Billing Department for the Erie County Medical Center Corporation; 

Performs all duties in accordance with Medicare, Medicaid, governmental and third party payer and patient self-pay billing guidelines, rules and regulations and ensures compliance with Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) regulations;

Operates electronic billing system;

Reviews patient medical bills for accuracy and completeness upon submission to payer;

Contacts patients, if necessary, to obtain information and assistance in processing claims;

Documents and updates patient accounts with correct and accurate information;

Follows up on unpaid or incorrectly paid claims to ensure correct and timely reimbursement;

Performs daily voucher breakdown to ensure timely follow-up is completed;

Prepares refunds for credit balances;

Prepares itemized bills and statements to be rendered;

Receives payments and set-up patient payment plans as required;

Analyzes and acts on system generated reports;

Bills and follows-up on payer and governmental audits;

Performs and monitors internal and external audits;

Reviews, completes and correctly files correspondence requests;

Monitors insurance denials; contacts insurance companies to resolve and recover denied claims;

Evaluates unresolved third party claims and processes appeals with insurance companies to obtain proper reimbursement;

Collaborates with internal and external departments to ensure correct billing practices and accurate reimbursement and to resolve billing issues;

Serves as a resource for problem solving for registration, demographic and insurance errors;

Tracks trends for denials and underpayments to facilitate process improvements; recommends quality and/or improvement initiatives;

Assists customers, both external and internal at the cashier’s window;

Receives and downloads electronic funds transfer (EFT) payments;

Maintains and updates various cash logs, ensures cash received and posted is balanced, prepares daily deposit;

Receives mail for posting;

Posts various payments and adjustments from insurance companies and patients;

Trains new staff members and current employees on new procedures;

Attends and participates in office meetings to review problems and issues and to review, identify and develop process improvements.

Qualifications:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:  Candidates must meet one of the following requirements on or before the date of the written test:

A.) Graduation from a regionally accredited or New York State registered college or university with an Associate’s Degree in Business, Finance, Accounting, or closely related field and one (1) year of experience in hospital or healthcare billing* (see Notes); or:

B.) Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma and three (3) years of experience in hospital or healthcare billing* (see Notes); or

C.) An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of (A) and (B).

Notes:

1. *Completion of a certificate program in Medical Billing or Medical Reimbursement or Professional/Physician Billing may be substituted for one (1) year of hospital or healthcare billing experience.

2. *A Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Finance, Accounting, or closely related field may be substituted for one (1) year of hospital or healthcare billing experience.

3.  Verifiable part-time and/or volunteer experience will be pro-rated toward meeting full-time experience requirement.

4. Your degree and/or college credit must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the New York State Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. A grade of "D" or better is necessary for a course to be credited as successfully completed. If your degree and/or college credit was awarded by an educational institution outside of the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to this Department for a list of acceptable companies providing this service; you must pay the required evaluation fee.

Notice to Candidates: Transcripts will now be accepted by the Department of Personnel ONLY at time of application.
All subsequent transcripts must be submitted at time of interview.

The New York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this examination. However, candidates may find information in the publication 'General Guide to Written Tests' helpful in preparing for this test. This publication is available on line at:https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.cfm.

Subjects of Examination:

Scopes / Subjects of examination: A test designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas.

Name and number checking
These questions test for the ability to distinguish between sets of words, letters, and/or numbers that are almost exactly alike. Material is usually presented in two or three columns, and you will have to determine how the entry in the first column compares with the entry in the second column and possibly the third. You will be instructed to mark your answers according to a designated code provided in the directions.

Operations with Letters and Numbers
These questions test for skills and abilities in operations involving alphabetizing, comparing, checking and counting. The questions require you to follow the specific directions given for each question which may involve alphabetizing, comparing, checking and counting given groups of letters and/or numbers.

Customer service
These questions test for knowledge of techniques used to interact with other people, to gather and present information, and to provide assistance, advice and effective customer service in a courteous and professional manner. Questions will cover such topics as understanding and responding to people with diverse needs, perspectives, personalities, and levels of familiarity with agency operations, as well as acting in a way that both serves the public and reflects well on your agency.

Arithmetic computation with calculator
These questions test for the ability to use a calculator to do basic computations. Questions will involve addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. You may also be asked to calculate averages, to use percents, and to round an answer to the nearest whole number. You should bring with you a hand-held battery- or solar-powered calculator for use on this test. You will not be permitted to use the calculator function of your cell phone.

Working with office records
These questions test your ability to work with office records. The test consists of two or more sets of questions, each set concerning a different problem. Typical record keeping problems might involve the organization or collation of numerical data from several sources; maintaining a record system using running balances; or completion of a table summarizing data using totals, subtotals, averages and percents. You should bring with you a hand-held battery- or solar-powered calculator for use on this test. You will not be permitted to use the calculator function of your cell phone.

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES:  It is recommended that candidates use a quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculator.  Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", “Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited.  You may not bring books or other reference materials.

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.