This position serves as a Legal Administrative Specialist (LAS) for the Health Eligibility Center's Enrollment Eligibility Division. The VA Health Eligibility Center (HEC) is VHA's authoritative source for enrollment and eligibility activities that support the delivery of VA health care benefits and is responsible for ensuring the integrity of VA's enrollment system.

Duties

Serves Veterans by answering questions, providing information, and assisting with the application process. Reviews benefit applications for completeness and analyzes various types of legal, financial, and military documents, etc., provided by Veterans and/or their designees. Notifies Veterans' and/or their designees of incomplete or missing information via the telephone or by generating a standard letter. Applies rules and regulations, interprets laws, VHA guidelines, and other federal agency policies to adjudicate and authorize Veterans' eligibility for enrollment and eligibility for VA healthcare benefits. Develops financial assessments to determine the veteran's priority for enrollment in the VA Healthcare System and their eligibility for income-based benefits. Enters Veterans' information into various HEC databases and executes transmission to VA/VHA facilities that will be or are already involved in the Veteran's care. Ensures timely and appropriate measures are taken throughout the data collection, data entry, validation, and verification processes. Counsels Veterans and their representatives regarding the outcome of the case development process to ensure that eligibility for VA benefits and services are thoroughly explained. Provides support to the Income Verification Division as needed. This includes but is not limited to performing special projects and phone coverage during meetings, trainings and/or conferences. Performs second level quality reviews on all eligibility cases, nationwide, determined to be ineligible for healthcare benefits by VA Medical Center enrollment staff. Reviews actions taken, researches all regulations to review the circumstances that could substantiate, enhance, or restore benefits. Ensures that all eligibility provisions are explored thoroughly before determining that a Veteran remains ineligible for benefits. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: 6:45am-7:15pm Compressed/Flexible: May be authorized depending on supervisor Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Legal Admin Sp (Cont Rep)/PD07538A and PD07539A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized 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, 05/10/2024. 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-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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. 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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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 and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience GS-07: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-05 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: (1) verifies information is correctly entered into appropriate databases for accurate reporting purposes.; (2) communicating daily in person and through other channels with Veterans, their family members or representatives; (3) utilizing computers to enter, research and/or update data records; (4) prepares, composes, and reviews correspondence for the purpose of obtaining or supplying information to internal as well as external customers; and, (5) gathers evidence related to the income verification process necessary to correctly adjudicate cases. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have one full year of graduate level graduation or superior academic achievement (SAA is Bachelor's Degree only). OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond bachelor's degree. Specialized Experience GS-09: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: (1) review cases for conflicting or inconsistent information to include by reviewing past transactions, cases or events, or research alternative sources of information.; (2) responds to telephonic, written, and face to face inquiries to a wide variety of non VA and VA agency representatives, and public official.; (3) analyze and verify all documentation for authenticity and ensure that it meets legal requirements for evidence; (4) ensures timely and appropriate measures are taken throughout data collection, and data entry process; and, (5) reviews actions taken on cases, researches all regulations to review the circumstances that could substantiate, enhance, or restore healthcare benefits OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have master's or equivalent graduate or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and beyond master's degree. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Computer SkillsInterpersonal SkillsOrganizational AwarenessProblem Solving 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: This is primarily a sedentary position, but the work requires some walking, bending, stooping and carrying of light objects such as manuals, documents, etc. Concentration and sustained performance under prolonged stress is required because of the time factors involved in completion of work assignments within deadlines. 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.

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address VHA Member Services 3401 SW 21st St Bldg 9 Topeka, KS 66604 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]