Patient Financial Advocate

Description IT’S MORE THAN A JOB. IT’S A CALLING. At Family Care Center, we are on a mission to transform lives by elevating behavioral health care. Our journey began in 2016 when two U.S. Army Veterans founded Family Care Center to help service members, Veterans and their families. We continue that tradition today, caring for people of all ages across a broad range of conditions with nearly 30 outpatient clinics in communities across Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Tennessee and Texas. If you'd like to work for one of the nation's fastest-growing behavioral health providers, collaborating with other committed team members and making a positive impact on your community, we look forward to hearing from you. Transforming lives is our life’s work. CARING & SUPPORTIVE CULTURE: We support you so you can support our patients. Our positive environment is complemented by an engaging wellness program, volunteer events, team activities and more. UNPARALLELED GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES: We offer clear paths for career advancement at every level, fostering your professional development and personal growth. BALANCED LIFESTYLE: Achieve professional fulfillment while nurturing a healthy work-life balance, free from weekend or evening hours. We understand the importance of both professional fulfillment and personal well-being. COLLABORATIVE TEAM: Join forces with a diverse team of top-notch behavioral health professionals, support staff and empowering leadership. Together, we work towards transforming the lives of our patients. IMPRESSIVE RETENTION RATES: Our compassionate, welcoming approach has helped us earn a higher-than-average provider retention rate of 88%. COMPREHENSIVE BENEFITS: We prioritize your overall well-being and financial security. Enjoy a full suite of competitive benefits, including medical, dental, fertility, retirement, wellness, profit sharing and more. Hourly C ompensation: $ 22 - $25 depending on experience. Position Overview: The Patient Financial Advocate assists patients in applying for financial assistance and establishing manageable payment plans for their outstanding balances. This role reviews financial assistance applications, approves sliding scale adjustments, and updates patient account balances in the billing system in accordance with organizational policy. The Patient Financial Advocate monitors active payment plans to ensure they cover the full account balance and proactively requests updates to plans as circumstances change. Essential Responsibilities: Reviews financial assistance applications submitted by patients, verifying documentation and eligibility against organizational sliding scale policy. Approves sliding scale discounts and adjusts patient account balances in the billing system to reflect approved financial assistance. Establishes and monitors patient payment plans, ensuring each plan is structured to fully satisfy the outstanding account balance within the agreed timeframe. Reviews active payment plans on an ongoing basis to identify missed payments, changed circumstances, or balances not on track to be resolved, and contacts patients to request updates or renegotiate terms. Communicates directly with patients by phone, email, and portal messaging to explain financial assistance eligibility, sliding scale determinations, and payment plan options. Maintains accurate and complete documentation of financial assistance applications, approvals, denials, and payment plan agreements in the billing system. Partners with the Patient Collections Supervisor and Patient Collections team to identify patients who may benefit from financial assistance or a payment plan. Monitors financial assistance and payment plan trends and reports observations to the Director, Revenue Recovery, including opportunities to improve the application and approval process. Ensures financial assistance and payment plan practices comply with organizational policy and applicable state and federal regulations, including charity care and collections requirements. Responds to patient inquiries and disputes regarding financial assistance determinations and payment plan terms in a timely and professional manner. Supervisory or Managerial Responsibility: None Other Duties : Other duties as assigned by management. Minimum Qualifications: High school diploma or general education degree (GED) required. Associate's degree in healthcare administration, finance, or related field preferred. Three years of experience in healthcare billing, patient financial services, medical collections, or medical front-office operations, including patient registration, scheduling, insurance verification, or payment collection, required. Experience with financial assistance/charity care programs preferred. Experience with EHR and billing systems required. Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite required. Knowledge of sliding scale/charity care and payment plan regulations preferred. Location: Remote Family Care Center is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, national origin, veteran status or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit, and business need. #LI-KF1