This position is located at the St. Cloud VA Medical Center physically located in St. Cloud, MN. The main purpose of this position is to provide program administrative and technical assistance in day-to-day Beneficiary Travel operations, performs program planning and completes special projects as assigned.
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 08/20/2025. 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-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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. You may qualify based on your experience described below: Specialized Experience: Applicants must possess at least one (1) year of specialized experience that equipped them with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position, and that is typically in or related to the work of this position. To be creditable, this experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-5 level in the Federal service. Specialized experience includes: collecting, compiling, tracking and analyzing data and statistical information in support of transportation; contacting customers to determine transportation needs and requirements; managing schedules for daily activities; entering information into an automated tracking system; and communicating and treating customers in a courteous, tactful and respectful manner. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Administration and Management Auditing Clerical 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: You may be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination. Candidate will be exposed to stressful working situations that require a professional attitude and collective reasoning. Will be subject to a high volume of work, the need for accuracy, frequency of interruptions and ever-changing demands due to program changes. Working Environment: Duties will be predominantly performed in the Veteran Transportation Service program office with intermittent trips to various locations throughout the Medical Center's catchment area both in and near patient care areas where there may be risk of exposure to disease. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.
Major Duties include, but not limited to: Works closely with the Chief Business Officer, Fiscal Staff, and other stakeholders to ensure Beneficiary Travel, Special Mode Transportation, fraud prevention, patient funds and ambulance billing programs are complying with Code of Federal Regulations, Veterans Transportation Program, and local policies. Works closely with clinical staff and other health care professionals within the Veterans Administration as well as Community Care providers, for coordination of Veterans transportation needs. Responsible for overall planning, coordination, implementation, management, and evaluation of clinical applications of patient transportation with emphasize on improving care, safety of Veterans in a cost-effective approach. In accordance with established beneficiary travel policy, per physician documentation and according to traveler's medical condition, decides either common carrier or special mode transportation. Accepts inbound Beneficiary Travel calls from Veterans and staff concerning transportation arrangements and responds to questions or problems related to reimbursement benefits. Independently manages the Medical Center's Beneficiary Travel program using eligibility criteria and regulatory authorities to appropriately administer program benefits to eligible Veterans and caretakers. Determines eligibility for government-sponsored travel using applicable federal regulations and policies for program benefits. Responsible for fund control point management for mileage reimbursements. Perform other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm Compressed/Flexible: Not authorized Telework: This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Transportation Assistant/PD99780S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not authorized The VA Midwest Health Care Network advocates for a Whole Health System of care in each of the Medical Centers. This is an approach to healthcare that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their lives to the fullest. As an employee operating in a Whole Health System of care, you will operate in a model with three core elements, seeking to create a personalized health plan for each Veteran. This is done in the context of healing relationships and healing environments and a connection back to the Veteran's community. This aligns with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mission Statement to Honor America's Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and well-being.