PATIENT RESOURCES WORKER / EMERGENCY APPOINTMENT HOMELESSNESS

Full Job Description

DEPARTMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH

TYPE OF RECRUITMENT:

OPEN COMPETITIVE - EMERGENCY

EXAM NUMBER:

b9192K-EA

FILING START DATE:

Thursday, April 2, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. (Pacific Time)

This opportunity will remain open until the needs of the service are met

The LA County Board of Supervisors recently declared a local state of emergency for homelessness (Download PDF reader), and the County is working to revise and expand our response to help all who are affected.

We are looking for qualified and passionate individuals to help us in the mission of addressing issues like housing, mental health, and substance use.

If you are looking for a new career that will directly benefit the population of LA County, this may be the opportunity for you.

Department of Mental Health is seeking qualified candidates to fill emergency Patient Resources Worker vacancies related to the homelessness crisis.

Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.

Before the end of your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighted 100%.

Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment to Patient Resources Worker.

Requirements

Interviews patients or their relatives and/or representatives to obtain identifying information, financial and other eligibility data; determines the patient's potential eligibility to enroll in specific health care programs based upon diagnosis, available medical information, type of medical/clinical services, and residency status; enters and accesses data by utilizing various local and web-based information systems and databases to determine a patient's financial eligibility.

Evaluates financial data and resources to determine the patient's ability to reimburse the County for health care services consistent with department policy; completes or assists the patient in the completion of benefits forms for third party resources; contacts private insurance companies to verify coverage and to obtain authorization for services; verifies existing governmental coverage for health care services, and screens for the patient's potential eligibility to receive Medi-Cal or other no-cost/low-cost programs.

Communicates with patients, responsible relatives and/or representatives, attorneys, employers, agencies and insurance companies to explain County policies and to obtain, verify, or clarify information required to complete standardized billing forms. Computes plans of payment for patients whose medical share of cost has already been established.

Completes required federal, State, and County forms for patients during emergency room visits, upon admission, and during outpatient clinic visits.

Refers patients without existing financial resources or with complex financial eligibility issues to a Patient Financial Services Worker or facility staff member.

Initiates and/or processes applications for a variety of reduced no-cost / low cost programs, such as ATP and UMDAP.

Patient Access:
Greets and registers patients in person or over the phone. Obtains demographics, preferred pharmacy, emergency contact and insurance information. Enrolls patient using electronic system. Provides forms to patients and completes paperwork for requested services. Determines when language interpretation is needed. Orients patients to health services by providing direction to appropriate locations for services.

Initiates and/or processes applications for a variety of reduced no-cost/low-cost programs, such as ATP and UMDAP.

Verifies coverage and empanelment prior to scheduling. Identifies when authorization and/or letter of agreement may be needed. Identifies discrepancies in assignment and empanelment and appropriately refers complex cases to Patient Relations Representatives.

Schedules patient visits by determining the appropriate providers and programs for patients. Ensures timely access to services by actively monitoring and coordinating multiple provider schedules and maintaining appointment templates for clinic providers.

Re-verifies eligibility in the month of the appointment to financially clear patients for appointments, conducts patient outreach by phone and/or mail, explains coverage options, refers the patient to member services as needed, and cancels appointments. Checks-in patient for appointment to explain payment options, obtains signatures, collects fees, and keeps records of insurance and patient identification.

Performs other related duties, as necessary.

Qualifications

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:

TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE:
Option I: Two years of experience interviewing the public to initiate or complete applications for financial assistance, credit, insurance, medical, mental health, hospital services, social security, or workers' compensation.

Option II: Three years of clerical experience, two years of which must have involved public contact associated with the financial screening and/or registration of patients or claims billing and collection for hospital or medical services.

Option III: Two years of experience involving public contact in the investigation and collection of accounts receivable.

Option IV: Completion of 60 semester units earned in an accredited* college or university.

Option V: Two years of experience in a health care setting with responsibility for performing patient access related work in the Emergency Department, Urgent Care or other walk-in registration, admitting, financial screening and eligibility verification, and scheduling area.

Transcript: In order to receive credit for any college or university course, or any type of college or university degree, such as Bachelor's or higher, you must include a legible copy of the official diploma or official transcripts from the accredited institution which shows the area of specialization with your application at the time of filing or email exams@dmh.lacounty.gov within 7 (seven) calendar days of filing.

Official Transcript is defined as a transcript that bears the college seal and states "official and/or copy" issued by the school's Registrar Office. A printout of the transcript from the school's website is NOT considered official and; therefore, will NOT be accepted and may result in your application being incomplete or rejected.

*ACCREDITATION: Accredited institutions are those listed in the publications of regional, national or international accrediting agencies which are accepted by the Department of Human Resources. Publications such as American Universities and Colleges and International Handbook of Universities are acceptable references. Also acceptable, if appropriate, are degrees that have been evaluated and deemed to be equivalent to degrees from United States accredited institutions by an academic credential evaluation agency recognized by The National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) or the Association of International Credential Evaluators, Inc. (AICE).

You MUST meet the above requirement(s) at time of filing in order to be appointed to fill any vacancies related to this recruitment.

LICENSE:
A valid California Class C Driver License or the ability to utilize an alternative method of transportation when needed to carry out job-related essential functions.

PHYSICAL CLASS II: Light.
This class includes administrative and clerical positions requiring light physical effort, including occasional light lifting to a 10 pound limit and some bending, stooping, or squatting. Considerable ambulation may be involved.

Additional Information

EXAMINATION CONTENT: Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.

Before the end of your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighted 100%. Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment.

APPLICATION AND FILING INFORMATION:
Applicants are required to complete and submit an online Los Angeles County Employment Application AND Supplemental Questionnaire in order to be considered for this examination. Paper applications, resumes, or any unsolicited documents will not be accepted in lieu of completing the online application and Supplemental Questionnaire. Application filing may be suspended at any time without advance notice.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING ONLINE:
Applications must be submitted online only and will be reviewed for interview consideration on an ongoing basis. If you have not been contacted within 60 days and the recruitment remains open or reopens for filing, we encourage you to submit a new application. This will allow you to reaffirm your interest and update any relevant information.

Plan to submit your online application well in advance before the deadline as you may be required to verify your email address. This only needs to be done once per email address, and if you already have a job seeker account on govermmentjobs.com/careers/lacounty.gov you can verify at any time by logging in and following the prompts. This is to enhance the security of your online application and to ensure you do not enter an incorrect email address.

Many important notifications will be sent electronically to the email address provided on the application. It is important that you provide a valid email address. Please addexams@dmh.lacounty.gov as well as noreply@governmentjobs.com and info@governmentjobs.com to your email address and list of approved senders to prevent email notifications from being filtered as spam/junk/clutter mail.

Applicants have the ability to opt out of emails from LA County. If you unsubscribe, you will not receive any email notification for any examination for which you apply with Los Angeles County. Regardless of whether you choose to unsubscribe, you can always check for notifications by logging into governmentjobs.com and viewing your profile in box, which saves a copy of all emailed notices.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER:
Please include your Social Security Number for record control purposes. Federal law requires that all employed persons have a Social Security Number.

COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AT LIBRARIES:
For candidates who may not have regular access to a computer or the internet, applications can be completed on computers at public libraries throughout Los Angeles County.

NO SHARING USER ID AND PASSWORD:
All applicants must file their applications online using their own user ID and password. Using a family member or friend's user ID and password may erase a candidate's original application record.

DEPARTMENT CONTACT:
Department Contact Name: Hon Sang Cheang, Exam Analyst
Department Contact Phone: (323) 705-3799 or (213) 972-7034
Department Contact Email: exams@dmh.lacounty.gov
ADA Coordinator Phone (323) 705-3799
Teletype Phone 800-735-2922
California Relay Services Phone 800-735-2922