Patient access representative vs patient advocate

The differences between patient access representatives and patient advocates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a patient access representative and a patient advocate. Additionally, a patient advocate has an average salary of $36,325, which is higher than the $33,603 average annual salary of a patient access representative.

The top three skills for a patient access representative include patients, customer service and medical terminology. The most important skills for a patient advocate are patients, customer service, and patient care.

Patient access representative vs patient advocate overview

	Patient Access Representative	Patient Advocate
Yearly salary	$33,603	$36,325
Hourly rate	$16.16	$17.46
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	151,077	88,778
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

What does a patient access representative do?

A Patient Access Representative is the first point of contact of a patient in a hospital facility. Among the duties include the checking-in and out of a patient, gathering a patient's information for the Doctors and Nurses to use, communicates with the patient's family or caregivers, and processes insurance billing. Most of the time, A Patient Access Representative encounters the critically ill or injured which is why one must possess great communication skills and compassion.

What does a patient advocate do?

A patient advocate is responsible for supporting the patients with the medical processes in a healthcare institution, assisting them with insurance claims and medical billing disputes, verifying treatment procedures, and conducting referrals to medical professionals based on the patient's needs. Patient advocates facilitate a payment plan for the patients, discussing this plan to the financial department of the facility. They also address the patients' inquiries and concerns, as well as their complaints with hospital operations, immediately raising these issues to higher management.

Patient access representative vs patient advocate salary

Patient access representatives and patient advocates have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patient Access Representative	Patient Advocate
Average salary	$33,603	$36,325
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $41,000	Between $29,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	Springfield, MA	Springfield, MA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Massachusetts
Best paying company	University of California, Berkeley	Cognizant
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between patient access representative and patient advocate education

There are a few differences between a patient access representative and a patient advocate in terms of educational background:

	Patient Access Representative	Patient Advocate
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Patient access representative vs patient advocate demographics

Here are the differences between patient access representatives' and patient advocates' demographics:

	Patient Access Representative	Patient Advocate
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 14.5% Female, 85.5%	Male, 17.5% Female, 82.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 6.5% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 23.6% Asian, 6.8% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between patient access representative and patient advocate duties and responsibilities

Patient access representative example responsibilities.

Use EMR software to manage patient records and files; reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPPA and clinic.
Conduct intensive screening of all Medicare, Medicaid and manage care patients for provider service eligibility.
Educate eligible applicants about Medicaid manage care and how to access benefits in a manage care environment.
Run internal reports to ensure ICD 9 and CPT procedure codes are accurate for billing for Medicare and Medicaid patients.
Deliver quality customer service and compassion while obtaining demographic and financial data from patients seeking emergency medical services.
Operate front desk check-in, preparation of charts, receive payments and balance books at the end of the day.

Patient advocate example responsibilities.

Manage the complaint process as required by CMS for the hospital.
Provide support for emergencies by managing inappropriate behaviors, aggressive patients, CPR and persons in crisis.
Train to welcome and register patients at ESI triage window.
Document patients medical problems using ICD 9 and CPT coding for patients diagnosis.
Pull any incoming referrals, triage them, and schedule patients with the appropriate doctor.
Collect and review patient information to determine patients' eligibility for Medicaid and charity program assistance.

Patient access representative vs patient advocate skills

Common patient access representative skills

Patients, 20%
Customer Service, 13%
Medical Terminology, 9%
Patient Care, 5%
Patient Registration, 5%
Insurance Verification, 4%

Common patient advocate skills

Patients, 28%
Customer Service, 11%
Patient Care, 5%
Medicaid, 4%
Financial Assistance, 4%
Patient Accounts, 4%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Patient Access Representative
Patient Access Representative vs Patient Advocate

Updated January 8, 2025

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