The Program Support Assistant is part of the Medical Administration Section (MAS) of the Business Office Service Line. This position is located at the VA Northern Indiana Healthcare System NA NIHCS). serve as a Program Support Assistant (PSA), also known as Health Benefits Advisor, to the Medical Administration Service (MAS). Responsible for a wide range of assignments and provides administrative support to the Section, and the clinical staff.

Duties

As a Program Support Assistant in the Health Benefits Unit, the selectee has the primary responsibility for interviewing patients applying for medical benefits. Applications may be received in person, by telephone, by mail, on-line or referral from another VA. Incumbent is responsible for entering demographic, insurance, and income information into the VistA system. This information serves as a base for determining entitlement to medical care as well as bill preparation and collections on all billable episodes of inpatient and outpatient care. Accurate and complete data collection is essential to proper processing of third party collection requirements as mandated by law. Incumbent serves as a Program Support Assistant for the Health Benefit Unit (HBU) of the Medical Administration Service. The HBU encompasses the following functions: Eligibility/Enrollment Sections, VHIC (Veteran Health ID Card) processing, Admission Office, Lodging, Decedent Affairs, Means Testing, Beneficiary Travel, including Special Mode Transportation, Legal Commitments and Emergency Detentions and Kiosks. Additional duties and responsibilities may be assigned to support the organizational duties of the Health Administration Section. The Program Support Assistants (PSA's) must be able to perform all of the duties of each of the functions in this Unit. Interprets, follows and maintains current informational knowledge base on procedures, policies, directives, etc - Responsible for interviewing patients who are applying for enrollment and medical benefits, incumbent is responsible for entering military service data, demographic information, Insurance and income information, into the Vista system - Determines entitlement to medical care within the VHA system using income assessment, military discharge documents, Vista Hospital Inquiry (HINQ) and other means advising veterans on t heir entitlement - Answers questions regarding copayment requirements, ineligibility for healthcare benefits, and combat veteran status among other eligibility questions - Enters consults within Vista for necessary or requested medical services - Performs administrative duties of the Decedent Affairs office, including notifying next of kin, assisting with funeral and burial arrangements, disposition of unclaimed remains, completion of death certificate and release of remains to funeral directors - Processes admissions, discharges and transfers in accordance with Healthcare System Policy and regulations - Prepares and processes paperwork for Involuntary Commitments and Probable Cause hearings - Generates patient data cards for veterans applying for VA care using the Veterans Identification Card (VHIC} system - Processes annual Means Tests and mails reminder letters weekly - Advises veterans on the hardship process and pro'-'.ides paperwork if appropriate - Reviews , Interprets and processes a variety of reports including; Pending Applications for Enrollment, Inconsistent Data Elements and Appointments for Veterans with no Enrollment, in order to ensure capture of all workload and veteran's entitlement to services - Verifies, scans insurance cards and enters health insurance information for all veterans processed through the Eligibility area - Verifies eligibility and makes arrangements, if appropriate, for overnight stays in the Hotel Accommodation Program, including closing out of consults In CPRS - Reports all problems and issues found relating to the intake process and helps to provide training to other administrative and clinical staff If assigned to do so - Knowledge of beneficiary travel rules and regulations regarding legal entitlement to travel reimbursement. - Knowledge on how to extract information and mileage from the tools made available to all VA staff and the ability to interpret contracts for transportation services. Knowledge of how to organize and maintain documentation and records supporting beneficiary travel reimbursements and vendor payments. - Knowledge of validation, control. and maintaining accounting records for many travel accounts and make frequent dollar amount adjustments of those accounts. Ensures compliance with procedures for obligating travel funds. Requests transfer of funds laterally among several fund control points to ensure availability of resources to meet obligations. VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package: HR Specialist Total Rewards Work Schedule: Monday-Saturday 0630-1800 as determined by the needs of the service. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Support Asstant (OA)/PD000046 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/22/2023. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-5 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Extensive knowledge of administrative aspects of patient care and veterans medical benefits including copayment schedules, priority groups and means testing requirements. Knowledge of working processes of the Eligibility Unit including, Registration, Decedent Affairs, Means Testing, VIC processing, Insurance Verification, Admissions and Legal Commitments and Emergency Detentions. Knowledge of Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), VA Policies, Public Laws, Veteran Health Administration (VHA) directives and Laws governing VA medical benefits and the programs related to the health care delivery system. Skill in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with coworkers and other hospital staff. You must be able to type at least 40 words or more per minute. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Customer Service (Clerical/Technical) Critical Thinking Computer Skills Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work of this position is primarily sedentary in an office setting, primarily while seated working closely with others or alone. The work involves walking, bending, and lifting and working at a PC. The incumbent may come in contact with angry and potentially violent customers. Position requires a high level of concentration. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Contacts

• Address Northern Indiana HCS 1700 East 38th Street Marion, IN 46953 US
• Name: Holli Walker
• Phone: 832-350-4150
• Email: [email protected]