UCSF

Public health sciences university in San Francisco

Medication Access Technician

PharmacyConfirmed live in the last 24 hours

Full-timeSan Francisco, CA, USANo salary listed

About the Job

Requirements

Complete a recognized or accredited Pharmacy Technician Training Program.
Have a minimum of three years of experience as a Pharmacy Technician or allied healthcare professional in a hospital, pharmacy, or other health care setting, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Have strong computer skills and experience using Microsoft Office.
Prioritize work efficiently.
Have interpersonal communication and writing skills and be able to work effectively with a large, diverse population, including maintaining good relationships between the Pharmacy and Ambulatory clinics.
Have organizational and problem-solving skills.
Be able to multitask and adapt to changing work assignments at short notice.
Have basic math skills.
Hold an active Pharmacy Technician license from the California Board of Pharmacy and be in good standing.

Responsibilities

Facilitate prescription prior authorization and refill requests by obtaining, preparing, and submitting required forms, requesting information from insurance companies about alternative therapies, and communicating authorization status to patients.
Facilitate medication refills by evaluating requests against refill protocol criteria, reviewing patient medical records in APeX, and contacting patients for needed information.
Perform medication benefits investigations and explore financial assistance options to help patients access medications, acting as the primary contact for medication authorization and refill requests.
Drive the prior authorization process to completion under pharmacist oversight and resolve related issues.
Perform medication benefits investigations and accurately submit prior authorizations to insurance manually, electronically, or by telephone as needed.
Notify patients of prior authorization and financial assistance status and document that status in APeX.
Follow up with health insurance payors that do not respond to submitted prior authorization requests.
Work with pharmacists or providers on denials and appeals.
Evaluate patient assistance program opportunities when necessary.
Receive and process refill requests from clinic personnel, pharmacies, or patients.
Evaluate refill requests against protocol criteria by reviewing APeX and contacting patients.
Notify the pharmacist when specific refill protocol criteria are not met after assessment.
Note when a provider appointment is needed, where applicable.
Discuss recommendations and other relevant information with the pharmacist.
Search for required laboratory tests, analyze the electronic medical record for needed tests, and notify patients about required laboratory tests when needed.
Pend orders or request provider appointments in APeX based on pharmacist judgment.
Document each refill request in the patient’s chart.
Assist with training and onboarding new staff and learners on refill and prior authorization processes.
Participate in the pharmacy’s continuous quality improvement activities.
Complete training requirements on time and stay up to date on policies and procedures.
Perform additional tasks related to pharmacy operations and patient care as directed by a supervisor or manager.

Desired Qualifications

Have recent experience processing third-party billing, including prior authorization facilitation and refill authorization.
Be bilingual in Spanish, Cantonese, and/or Russian.
Have a bachelor's degree in health or behavioral science.
Hold Medical Assistant Certification.
Be able to use an electronic medical record and perform chart abstraction into the electronic medical record, specifically APeX.
Be adaptable to learning new technologies, including artificial intelligence solutions.

As a patient-centered organization, UCSF Medical Center exists to enhance the health and well-being of people through patient care, research and education. Success in this mission requires a culture of collaboration, excellence, leadership and respect. UCSF Medical Center seeks faculty and staff that are committed to the values of professionalism, respect, integrity, diversity and excellence that are integral to our mission

Under the supervision of the Medication Access Manager and guided by the policies and procedures of the Ambulatory and Outpatient Pharmacy Services, the Pharmacy Medication Support Specialist (MSS) facilitates prescription prior authorization (PA) and refill requests This role involves obtaining, preparing and submitting the necessary forms for insurance authorizations, requesting information from insurance companies regarding possible alternative therapies, and providing patients with timely communications regarding the status of the PA. In addition, this position is also responsible in facilitating medication refills requests. Using a refill protocol, the MSS evaluates refill requests for adherence to the refill protocol criteria which includes reviewing a patient’s medical record in APeX and contacting a patient for needed information. The MSS also performs medication benefits investigations and explores financial assistance options where applicable, to ensure patients have access to the medication they need, acting as the primary contact for all medication authorization and refill requests.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

This position requires flexibility to orient and work at all UCSF Medical Center locations.
Completion of a recognized/accredited Pharmacy Technician Training Program.
Minimum three (3) years’ experience as a Pharmacy Technician or allied healthcare professional in a hospital, pharmacy, or other health care setting, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
Strong computer skills and use of Microsoft Office
Ability to prioritize work efficiently
Excellent interpersonal communication skills, writing skills, and ability to work effectively with a large, diverse population, including maintaining good relationships between the Pharmacy and Ambulatory clinics.
Excellent organizational and problem-solving skills
Must be able to multitask and be flexible in changing work assignments at short notice
Basic math skills

PREFERRED QUALIFICATION

Recent experience processing third-party billing, including prior authorization facilitation and refill authorization
Bilingual in Spanish, Cantonese, and/or Russian preferred
Bachelor’s degree in health or behavioral science.
Medical Assistant Certification
Ability to use EMR and perform chart abstraction into EMR – specifically APeX
Adaptable to learn new technologies including AI solutions.

REQUIRED LICENSES/CERTIFICATIONS

• Licensed Pharmacy Technician by the California Board of Pharmacy and in good standing

DUTIES & ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

% of time	Essential Function (Yes/No)	Key Responsibilities (To be completed by Supervisor)
45	YES	Prior Authorization (PA) and Financial Assistance Facilitation Under the oversight of pharmacists, drives the Prior Authorization (PA) process to completion and resolves any related issues. Performs medication benefits investigation and accurately submits prior authorizations to insurance manually, electronically, or telephonically as necessary Notifies the patient and documents the status of the PA and financial assistance in APeX Follows up with health insurance payors that don’t respond to submitted PA requests Works with pharmacists or providers for any denials and appeals Evaluates patient assistance program opportunities if necessary
45	YES	Refill Authorization Receives and processes refill requests from clinic personnel, a pharmacy or patients Using a refill protocol, evaluates refill requests for adherence to the refill protocol criteria; this involves reviewing APeX and contacting a patient Notifies pharmacist of specific refill protocol criteria that are not met after assessment Notates the need for a provider appointment where applicable Discusses recommendations and other pertinent information with the pharmacist Conducts a search for any lab test(s) that is needed to fulfill the protocol and analyzes EMR for any needed lab test(s) and notates this need; if needed, inform patients about needed labs Pend the order or request for provider appointment based on pharmacist judgment via APeX Properly documents each refill request in the patient’s chart
10	YES	Administrative Functions Assists in training and onboarding new staff and learners regarding the refill and PA processes Participates in the pharmacy’s continuous quality improvement Completes training requirements timely and stay up to date on policies and procedures Performs additional tasks as deemed appropriate or necessary by the supervisor/manager pertaining to pharmacy operations and patient care
100%		(To update total %, enter the amount of time in whole numbers (without the % symbol - e.g., 15, 20) then highlight the total sum (e.g., 1%) at the bottom of the column and press F9. The total sum should add up to 100%.)

About the Company

UCSF

Public health sciences university in San Francisco

UC San Francisco is a public research university in San Francisco focused solely on health sciences, combining professional education with biomedical research and patient care. Its schools of dentistry, medicine, nursing and pharmacy train clinicians and scientists, while teams investigate cancer, immunology, genomics and neuroscience. UCSF Medical Center and Benioff Children's Hospitals connect clinical care with faculty research and training, and university clinics serve patients across Northern California. Founded in 1864, UCSF is the University of California campus dedicated to graduate and professional education and biomedical research, based in San Francisco.

Company size: 10,001+
Company stage: Not listed
Total funding: Not listed
Headquarters: Not listed
Founded: 1864

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