Financial Accounts Technician

Summary

The Financial Accounts Technician is organizationally aligned under the Chief Financial Officer, Consolidated Patient Accounts Center (CPAC), located at the Veterans Healthcare System in Middleton, Wisconsin.

Duties

THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION This position involves a multi-grade career ladder. The major duties listed below represent the full performance level of GS-06. At the GS-05 grade level, you will perform assignments of a more limited scope and with less independence. You will progressively acquire the background necessary to perform at the full performance level of GS-06. Promotion is at the discretion of the supervisor and is contingent upon satisfactory performance, availability of higher-level work, and availability of funds. Major duties include, but may not be limited to the following: Reviews, researches, analyzes all accounts receivable records and documentation. Reviews and analyzes case information, remittance statements from the third-party payer or and others and the accounts receivable record relating to the debt. Analyzes third-party legal bills when additional information is received, or additional claims are paid. Reviews and verifies the validity of request for recoupment against benefit eligibility records, insurance data; vendor data and claim payment history. Reviews bill of collection for accuracy against submitted documentation, vendor address, fund control point, fiscal year, fund appropriation, claim refund payment, recoupment reason, etc. Validates and monitors accounts receivable transactions. Uses judgment and experience to reconstruct incomplete files and gather and organize information for inquiries. Interviews by telephone or via mail, beneficiaries and insurance representatives, to obtain sufficient information to process a case. Reconciles error reports and takes corrective action between different systems. Audits bill of collection and billing documents for error, omissions, duplications, and inconsistencies. Utilizes systems to review claims. Perform other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: May be approved for highly qualified candidates Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Required Documents" below for details. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE GS-5: Applicants must possess at least one (1) full year of specialized experience that equipped them with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position, and that is typically in or related to the work of this position. To be creditable, this experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-4 level in the Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: following instructions about timeliness, objectives, and relative priorities for doing administrative work; communicating with co-workers and supervisors to discuss administrative concerns; and reviewing and determining the appropriateness of administrative data. NOTE: Experience must be documented within the resume to receive credit indicating clearly the nature of duties and responsibilities in each position, month and year and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. OR EDUCATION GS-5: You must have successfully completed a bachelor's degree or 4 years of education above the high school level in any field for which high school graduation or the equivalent is the normal prerequisite. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university. One year of full-time academic study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college or university, or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a business, secretarial, or technical school. (Transcripts Required.) OR COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE GS-5: An equivalent combination of specialized experience and post high school education as described above that demonstrates the ability to perform the duties of this position. (Transcripts Required.) SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE GS-6: Requires at least one year of specialized experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-5 grade level in the Federal Service. Specialized experience includes utilizing multiple electronic accounts receivable and financial systems applying knowledge of medical terminology and diagnostic coding to complete tasks pertaining to healthcare insurance verification, billing, first and third-party collections, and resolving claims submissions. (Resume(s) must clearly support the duties and experience required for this position. We will not make assumptions regarding experience.) 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

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. There is no educational substitution at the GS-6 grade level. 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/. How You Will Be Evaluated

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics): Arithmetic/Mathematical Reasoning Customer Service Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Reasoning Teamwork Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. 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. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. Candidates who apply under "All U.S. Citizens" announcements will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. Qualified candidates will be assigned to a quality category. The categories are defined as follows: Best qualified - Applicants possessing the type and quality of experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications Very Highly Qualified - Applicants possessing the type and quality of experience that exceeds, to a very considerable extent, the minimum qualifications Highly Qualified - Applicants possessing the type and quality of experience that exceeds, to a considerable extent, the minimum qualifications Well qualified - Applicants possessing the type and quality of experience that marginally exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and who demonstrate average proficiency in most of the critical competencies Qualified - Applicants possessing the type and quality of experience that meets the minimum qualifications Application of Veterans' Preference: Category rating and selection procedures place those with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Preference eligible applicants that meet the eligibility and qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category (except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher). 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. Other Information

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 80 or more before any Veterans preference points) for this vacancy. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.