Program Support Assistant

Summary The Syracuse VAMC is recruiting for one Program Support Assistant for the Health Benefits Center. The incumbent performs but not limited to a broad range of administrative activities in support to community outreach activities, eligibility determination, program management, financial technician functions, basic Medical Cost Care Fund functions, transportation functions, beneficiary travel billing management, health benefit determination and counseling, data management, Sharing Agreements, etc. Responsibilities Major duties include but are not limited to: Advise applicants of the health care benefits they are legally entitled to. Initiate administrative processes for establishing care, and notify appropriate healthcare personnel accordingly. The incumbent is required to keep abreast of the frequent changes in laws, regulations and/or other pertinent directives that change medical benefits and entitlements. Educate and counsel veterans, families, and agency employees regarding veteran entitlement to healthcare benefits. Receives, reviews, and processes new recurring applications for Medical, Dental, Behavioral Health, Geriatrics and Extending Care, Diagnostic and Therapeutics, inpatient, outpatient, and Long-Term Care services. Verify eligibility for care utilizing primary sources including but not limited to HINQ, VIS, and/ or military discharge papers. The incumbent will educate Medical Center and CBOC staff about patient benefits specific to each sharing agreement to facilitate appropriate and timely delivery of health care services within the scope of the agreement. Responsibilities include financial data collection, data entry, analysis, and interpretation of initial and subsequent annual veteran financial assessments. Prepare Means Test reminder letters; provide the National Health Eligibility Center with current authenticated financial assessments; monitor, trend status of incomplete means tests providing follow-up activities when required. Provide veterans with billing information and serve as primary contact for billing issues; includes research, identification, analysis, and resolution/reconciliation utilizing the VISTA billing software to research individual billing information. Determine eligibility for travel at government expense, based upon applicable federal regulations and policies. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 7:30 - 4:00 pm Telework: This position may be authorized for ad-hoc telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Support Assistant/PD01040A Requirements Conditions of Employment 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 is administrative processing which requires standing, walking, sitting, stooping, bending, lifting light objects, answering telephone and data entry into VISTA; driving an automobile. 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 ( 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) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial 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 period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/16/2026. 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-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. 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 as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-5 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level in the Federal service that equipped me with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the Program Support Assistant position. Specialized experience includes but are not limited to. Must maintain a thorough working knowledge and understandings of principles, concepts, policies, laws, regulations, and objectives applicable to an extensive variety of multiple complex and interacting VA and benefit programs including but not limited to eligibility determination, health benefit counseling, financial assessment processes, co-payment responsibilities, Beneficiary Travel, Long Term Care eligibility, Non-VA Care, sharing Agreements such as Tricare and CHAMPVA. Must possess thorough knowledge and understanding of VA Health benefits available to beneficiaries of the DOD, CHAMPVA, and TRICARE programs; including working knowledge of applicable laws, regulations, policies governing VA treatment of DOD members; and proficient in communicating benefit information to patients' population. Provides Veterans with billing information and serve as primary contact for billing issues; includes research, identification, analysis, and resolution/reconciliation utilizing VISTA billing software to research billing information; coordinates communications with Medical Care Cost Funds (MCCF) and pharmacy staff; and provide appropriate follow through to ensure billing issues are resolved. Must demonstrate working knowledge and technical proficiency in administration of multiple Beneficiary Travel programs; eligibility criteria and regulatory authorities for each; to appropriately administer the program benefits to eligible veterans. Demonstrate advance knowledge in scheduling and coordinating patient transportation and must demonstrate knowledge in Personal Funds of Patients Program. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Accountability Attention to Detail Computer Skills Customer Service Customer Service (Clerical/Technical) Decision Making Flexibility Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Learning Problem Solving Reading Comprehension Reasoning Self-Management Stress Tolerance Teamwork 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: The work is administrative processing which requires standing, walking, sitting, stooping, bending, lifting light objects, answering telephone and data entry into VISTA; driving an automobile. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at Education There is no educational substitution at this 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: 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: Additional Information 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. 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. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. 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. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at