Maria Aquino
North Arlington
Summary
Results-driven medical collector with expertise in optimizing billing operations through effective communication and data analysis. Achieved significant improvements in claim resolution rates while training administrative staff to enhance workflow efficiency. Focused on fostering a patient-centered approach in healthcare services.
Overview
16
16
years of professional experience
Work History
Office Manager
Hope Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation
Irvington
11.2025 - Current
- Managed daily office operations and organized filing systems to improve information retrieval.
- Coordinated patient scheduling to maximize appointment availability and minimize wait times.
- Oversaw inventory management for office supplies and medical equipment.
- Trained and supervised administrative staff to streamline workflow and improve service delivery.
- Resolved patient inquiries about billing statements and payments with effective communication.
- Developed policies to improve billing procedures and accuracy.
- Collaborated with healthcare providers for verification of insurance information.
- Reviewed claims for accuracy before submission to maintain compliance.
Administrative Assistant
Adecco/ Rutgers School of Dental Medicine
Newark
01.2025 - 11.2025
- Handled patient phone calls and scheduled appointments to enhance client engagement.
- Provided administrative support to enhance overall office efficiency.
- Managed calendar and sorted mail to streamline office operations.
- Oversaw routine and advanced tasks for various professionals to maintain smooth workflow.
- Verified insurance and processed confidential, time-sensitive materials.
- Assisted as front desk receptionist during peak times to maintain service levels.
Patient Access/Prior Authorization Representative
Atlantic Health Systems
Morristown
11.2022 - 09.2024
- Initiated over 40 authorizations daily.
- Authorized radiology requests per plan guidelines to ensure compliance and timely patient care.
- Reached out to insurance carriers to obtain authorizations for testing and procedures.
- Verified eligibility and compliance for service providers to facilitate accurate and timely authorization processes.
- Fielded and resolved authorization inquiries from plan members and medical staff to support efficient communication.
- Obtained and logged accurate patient insurance and demographic information for use by insurance
- Gathered and reviewed records relevant to specific problems and attached them to correspondence.
Office Manager
Hope Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Services
Irvington
08.2020 - 10.2022
- Serve as the practice expert and go to person for all coding and billing processes.
- Plan and direct patient insurance documentation, workload, coding, billing and collections
- Analyze billing and claims for accuracy and completeness; submit claims to proper insurance entities
- Monitored operations of billing department, including medical coding and claims processing.
- Prepared and analyzed accounts receivable and financial reports on weekly and monthly basis.
Client Manager/Team Lead
Park Medical Billing
Englewood
03.2019 - 05.2020
- Led a team of a total of 24 employees
- Developed action plans to enhance account management and client satisfaction
- Facilitated client meetings to review account status and address concerns
- Managed AR for multiple clients with Physical Therapy and Chiropractic Specialty
- Contacted payers to resolve payment discrepancies
- Followed up on any unpaid claims
- Generated and submitted claims electronically and paper
- Directed team in identifying problems, solving issues, and implementing continuous improvement strategies
Medical Biller
Rite care Medical Center
Hialeah
11.2018 - 02.2019
- Knowledge of Insurance, especially Medicare and Medicaid rules and guidelines
- Perform coding and billing tasks on a computerized health information technology (HIT) system.
- Utilize a combination of electronic health record (EHR) and paper patient records to perform billing duties.
- Reviewed insurance payments for accuracy and ensured compliance with contract discounts.
- Review denials or partially paid claims and work with the involved parties to resolve the discrepancy.
- Identified insurance companies or proper parties to be billed, including secondary and tertiary insurance.
- Maintain an accurate, legally compliant medical record.
- Processed claims upon payment and credited accounts accordingly.
- Managed assigned accounts to secure timely payment of outstanding claims and contacted appropriate parties for collections.
Claims Resolution Special
Astra Urgent Care Centers
Bayonne
12.2017 - 07.2018
- Corrected claims by accurately entering procedure and diagnosis codes from medical notes, ensuring timely processing.
- Prepared and submitted clean claims to various insurance companies either electronically or by paper
- Contacted insurance companies to check eligibility and confirm claim status to ensure payment
- Worked rejected claims from clearing house to resubmit
- Collected on 90-day medical accounts or older
- Tracked delinquencies, creating statistical spreadsheets to inform management of account status and trends.
- Posted payments received from various payers into accounting system, maintaining accurate financial records.
Claims Resolution Specialist/Supervisor
Caduceus Inc.
Jersey City
08.2015 - 12.2017
- Evaluated client information to determine appropriate insurance billing and gathered necessary attachments or documentation for each claim.
- Research account information to determine the necessary attachments or supporting documentation to send with each claim.
- Ensure the integrity of each claim that is billed.
- Addressed and resolved accounts to ensure timely processing and minimize delays.
- Draft written appeals for account disputes.
- Researched account denials and filed written appeals to facilitate resolution.
- Met specified goals and objectives set by management regularly.
Patient Service Representative
Summit Medical Group/NJ Physicians LLC.
Clifton
10.2014 - 08.2015
- Delivered superior customer service consistently to enhance patient experience
- Coordinated patient appointments to optimize scheduling and reduce wait times
- Obtain current patient information from established and new patients
- Communicated registration information effectively to coworkers, physicians, and patients
- Accurately pre-screen medical records
- View billing sheets for any missing information from Physicians
- Provided translation services for patients
Medical Collector/Biller/Coder
NJ Physicians L.L.C.
Clifton
03.2010 - 10.2014
- Monitored billing and collections to ensure timely payments
- Submitted appeals for denied Medicare and commercial claims to secure reimbursement
- Disputed denied claims with insurance carriers to facilitate resolution
- Corrected claims to resubmit to the insurance carriers
- Coded and entered charges for multiple specialties
- Received incoming calls from patients regarding their balance, resolved disputes and processed payments
- Posted payments both electronically and manually
Education
Certified Computer Technician - Computer Technology
Plaza School of Technology
Paramus, NJ03-1998
Skills
- Office administration
- Office management
- Scheduling and calendar management
- Patient scheduling
- Billing
- Financial management
- Insurance coordination
- Regulatory adherence
- Process improvement
- Reporting techniques
- Supply chain management
- Team leadership
- Staff training
- Employee training
- Client engagement
- Customer service
- Organizational skills
- Attention to detail
- Problem solving
- Effective communication
References
Available upon request
Languages
Spanish
Professional
Timeline
Office Manager
Hope Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation
11.2025 - Current
Administrative Assistant
Adecco/ Rutgers School of Dental Medicine
01.2025 - 11.2025
Patient Access/Prior Authorization Representative
Atlantic Health Systems
11.2022 - 09.2024
Office Manager
Hope Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Services
08.2020 - 10.2022
Client Manager/Team Lead
Park Medical Billing
03.2019 - 05.2020
Medical Biller
Rite care Medical Center
11.2018 - 02.2019
Claims Resolution Special
Astra Urgent Care Centers
12.2017 - 07.2018
Claims Resolution Specialist/Supervisor
Caduceus Inc.
08.2015 - 12.2017
Patient Service Representative
Summit Medical Group/NJ Physicians LLC.
10.2014 - 08.2015
Medical Collector/Biller/Coder
NJ Physicians L.L.C.
03.2010 - 10.2014
Certified Computer Technician - Computer Technology
Plaza School of Technology