Prior authorization specialist vs patient liaison

The differences between prior authorization specialists and patient liaisons can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a prior authorization specialist and a patient liaison. Additionally, a prior authorization specialist has an average salary of $36,120, which is higher than the $32,314 average annual salary of a patient liaison.

The top three skills for a prior authorization specialist include patients, customer service and medical necessity. The most important skills for a patient liaison are patients, customer service, and medical terminology.

Prior authorization specialist vs patient liaison overview

	Prior Authorization Specialist	Patient Liaison
Yearly salary	$36,120	$32,314
Hourly rate	$17.37	$15.54
Growth rate	-4%	-4%
Number of jobs	69,667	84,302
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

What does a prior authorization specialist do?

Prior Authorization Specialists are individuals responsible for the entire process of prior authorization for a client. They manage communication between stakeholders of clients, healthcare providers, and insurance companies to request for prior authorizations. Their duties include ensuring complete and updated patient and claim documentation, performing daily billings, auditing accounts for accurate submissions claim, and making sure patient treatment reimbursements are processed effectively. Prior Authorization Specialists also review outstanding accounts and handle reimbursement or billing issues to ensure clean billing claims.

What does a patient liaison do?

Patient Liaisons are intermediaries addressing concerns on behalf of patients and families working in tandem with the hospital administrator. They are responsible for gathering data regarding patient care issues and inquiries, assessing patient well-being, suggesting improvements, and interpreting hospital service, policies, and procedures to patients and families. Patient Liaisons also work to educate health care professionals in humanizing the hospital experience for patients. They work in a hospital, clinic, nursing home, or programs related to public health.

Prior authorization specialist vs patient liaison salary

Prior authorization specialists and patient liaisons have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Prior Authorization Specialist	Patient Liaison
Average salary	$36,120	$32,314
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $46,000	Between $24,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City	Framingham, MA	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	Massachusetts
Best paying company	Washington State University	Brigham and Women's Hospital
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between prior authorization specialist and patient liaison education

There are a few differences between a prior authorization specialist and a patient liaison in terms of educational background:

	Prior Authorization Specialist	Patient Liaison
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 32%	Bachelor's Degree, 51%
Most common major	Nursing	Business
Most common college	University of Southern California	University of Pennsylvania

Prior authorization specialist vs patient liaison demographics

Here are the differences between prior authorization specialists' and patient liaisons' demographics:

	Prior Authorization Specialist	Patient Liaison
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 18.4% Female, 81.6%	Male, 16.2% Female, 83.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 23.0% Asian, 6.9% White, 54.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 20.1% Asian, 6.9% White, 55.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between prior authorization specialist and patient liaison duties and responsibilities

Prior authorization specialist example responsibilities.

Utilize CMS and InterQual criteria to establish authorizations for members requiring medical services for a Medicare advantage insurance company.
Manage quality communication, patient support and service representation with patients and providers to establish equipment/procedures statuses and expedite orders.
Work with staff to ensure proper CPT codes are submit on authorization request.
Demonstrate compassion while obtaining patient demographics and personal health information.
Register patients into the emergency department or outpatients for surgery or procedures.
Register patients' demographics and insurance information; execute daily outpatient and surgery reports.

Patient liaison example responsibilities.

Provide support for emergencies by managing inappropriate behaviors, aggressive patients, CPR and persons in crisis.
Conduct all insurance verification and obtain authorization to treat sub-acute rehabilitation patients.
Attend Michigan state eligibility hearings, when necessary to assist and gain Medicaid disability benefits for patients.
Interview patients of hospital facility to obtain necessary documentation to secure Medicaid coverage as payment of inpatient hospital charges.
Set up payment plan, verify personal information per HIPAA guidelines.
Respect and maintain HIPPA and patient confidentiality and dignity of patients at all times.

Prior authorization specialist vs patient liaison skills

Common prior authorization specialist skills

Patients, 18%
Customer Service, 8%
Medical Necessity, 8%
Medical Terminology, 6%
Clinical Resource, 6%
Authorization Process, 4%

Common patient liaison skills

Patients, 37%
Customer Service, 16%
Medical Terminology, 4%
Health System, 3%
HIPAA, 3%
Surgery, 2%

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Prior Authorization Specialist
Prior Authorization Specialist vs Patient Liaison

Updated January 8, 2025

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