Eligibility Specialist - Multiple Openings 11-26

Job Details

• Recruitment Closes: 11/24/2026
• Starting Salary: $4426 per month*
• Benefits: Medical, Dental, Retirement, Paid Leave and more
• FTE: Full-time
• FLSA status: Non-exempt
• Unit: Service Unit 3
• Location: Salem, OR
• Reports to: Program Supervisor
• Union status: Represented

*Salary placement is based on education, training, and relevant experience, consistent with the agency's pay practices.

Join Our Team!

NorthWest Senior and Disability Services (NWSDS) is a local intergovernmental agency dedicated to supporting older adults and people with disabilities through programs that promote dignity, choice, and independence. We are seeking individuals who are committed to public service, value teamwork, and provide respectful, high-quality service to the communities we serve.

We Offer Excellent Benefits

Agency-Sponsored:

• Medical and Dental Insurance – 100% paid for employees and 90–98% covered for dependents
• Generous Paid Time Off and holidays
• Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) participation
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Supportive and collaborative work culture

Employee-Sponsored:

• Deferred Compensation (457 Plan)
• Life Insurance
• Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Supplemental Plans such as accident, critical illness, and legal coverage

General Description

Meets Agency Mission, Vision and Values by determining financial eligibility for benefits and enrolling consumers and maintaining ongoing consumer enrollment in various medical assistance programs.

NOTE: Eligibility Specialist positions may focus on specific outcomes and focus on carrying a specific workload, such as specializing in intakes, recertifications, or a combination of all noted outcomes.  Specialization may be subject to change.

Essential Functions

1. Determine eligibility for participation in financial, medical, and SNAP benefits
2. Conduct annual reviews of financial eligibility for participation in financial, medical and SNAP benefit programs
3. Provides ongoing consumer maintenance
4. Provides additional assistance to consumers as needed
5. Promotes person centered services
6. Protects consumers and reduces Agency risk
7. Provides excellent service in a professional manner

1. Determine eligibility for participation in financial, medical and SNAP benefit programs by:

• Interview individuals via phone or in person to gather necessary information.
• Explain benefits and resources available.
• Review application documents for completeness (may include helping individual through application process).
• Assist applicant in obtaining verifications.
• Collaborate and coordinate with others including Department of Human Services, Oregon Health Authority, Coordinated Care Organizations, attorneys, behavioral health partners, pharmacies, Social Security Administration, Medicare, medical providers, etc.
• Process forms and documents.
• Apply program rules and policy to determine if individual qualifies for programs.
• Provide notification of eligibility decisions timely and completely as outlined in rules and policy.
• Maintain electronic and paper consumer files.
• Cover incoming calls on eligibility for the unit, i.e. “Worker of the Day.”

1. Conduct annual reviews of financial eligibility for participation in financial, medical and SNAP benefit programs 

• Ensure consumer receives re-determination information.
• Review returned materials for completeness.
• Contact consumer for additional information or to clarify as necessary.
• Apply program rules and policy to determine if individual continues to qualify for program.
• Provide notification of eligibility decisions timely and completely as outlined in rules and policy.
• Maintain electronic and paper consumer files.
• Process information, forms and documents between determinations to ensure consumer benefits are current. 

1. Provide ongoing consumer maintenance

• Receive, review and process updated information from consumers.
• Adjust benefits as needed.
• Verify information.

1. Provide additional assistance to consumers as needed 

• Process and review forms and data related to MMIS database.
• Provide additional resources and community referrals as appropriate.
• Attend consumer hearings and provide testimony as necessary.
• Process other reports as necessary, such as reporting deceased consumers, monthly reports to manager on closed, denied and withdrawn cases. 

(FOR BILINGUAL POSITIONS ONLY) 

Ensure Non-English speaking consumers receive services 

• Communicate with individuals whose primary language skills are non-English.
• Provide services to consumers whose primary language skills are non-English.
• Serve as an interpreter for the Agency in the identified language pair, including oral and written, interpret and explain forms, explain rules and policies, etc.
• Translation of written materials.

1. Promote person centered services 

• Embrace and exhibit the Agency Mission and Core Values.
• Understand the role of consumer choice.
• Interact with the public, consumers, co-workers and others in a patient, respectful and culturally appropriate manner.
• Educate self and others of resources available for populations served, including researching electronic and written materials and Aging and Disability Resource Connection of Oregon resource database.
• Understand other Agency resources and access resources and assistance to consumers as needed

1. Protects consumers and reduces Agency risk  

• Follow policies, regulations and requirements of the program and Agency; document plan and progress as required. 
• Serve as a Mandatory Reporter of suspected abuse of vulnerable populations as required by policy and regulation.
• Maintain and share information according to privacy regulations.

1. Provides excellent service in a professional manner

• Meet the needs of consumers, follow through, meet deadlines, and maintain skills and knowledge to perform the job.

• Apply the required knowledge and skills and exhibit critical thinking and problem solving.
• Exhibit good decision making, problem solving and work habits.
• Meet quality standards in accuracy, judgment, timeliness and follow policy and procedure.
• Exhibit good work habits, including organizational skills, regular attendance, working independently, seeking and offering assistance when needed.
• Exhibit technology skills related to the work needing to be done, (word processing, spreadsheets, database, internet research, mail, IM, phones, copiers, assessment programs like CAPS, Oregon ACCESS, etc.);
• Regular attendance to meet the demands of this job and provide necessary services.

Supervisory Responsibilities

None

Minimum Qualifications – Education and Experience

A qualified applicant will have a minimum of four (4) years of equivalent combination of education and/or experience which demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities required to perform the essential functions of this position.  Minimum qualifications may be met through any of the following:

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Social Sciences, Human Services, or a closely related field; or
• Four (4) years of relevant experience providing assistance to the public that includes any combination of interpreting and applying program rules or policies; determining eligibility, conducting intake interviews; verifying documentation; or performing casework.

(FOR BILINGUAL POSITIONS ONLY)

• Successful completion of a Language Proficiency Test

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

The successful applicant must have the following general skills, including the ability to:

• Understand and interpret applicable policies and apply them to problem-solving and decision-making in order to serve external and internal customers
• Apply the knowledge and skills in a timely, accurate, and efficient manner to meet deadlines
• Process a high volume of work with critical deadlines
• Organize and prioritize work to meet required time time-frames
• Multi-task
• Collaborate and coordinate with others
• Build relationships and network
• Exhibit excellent interpersonal communication and listening skills
• Exhibit good judgment, and use courtesy and tact
• Speak, read, write, and understand English
• Follow verbal and written instruction
• Know and commit to abide by rules governing consumer confidentiality and mandatory reporting

The successful applicant must have the following job-specific skills, including the ability to:

• Learn available services of Agency and other community services
• Apply knowledge of program rules
• Utilize general math skills
• Interview and obtain general and financial information
• Understand the role of the individual’s preferences in care success
• Keep up with fast changing rules through training and resources provided by the Agency
• Learn and use database to maintain complete and timely files, including data entry and narration of ongoing work
• Meet quality work standards
• Learn and apply general office practices such as confidentiality rules, employee records maintenance, client records maintenance, and agency policies and procedures applicable to the specific program and area of work
• Use extensive business-English skills (grammar, spelling, and punctuation)
• Operate a personal computer, copier, fax machine, phone, and general office equipment, etc.
• (For Bilingual) Successfully demonstrate the required level of oral and written proficiency for bilingual duties in identified language pair (English/Spanish, Russian, ASL, etc.)   

Other Requirements

The successful applicant must have the following skills, including the ability to:

• Support the agency’s mission, ethics, and values
• Secure and maintain a valid driver’s license in the state of Oregon, or an acceptable alternative means of transportation
• Commit to regular attendance as it is required to meet the demands of this job
• Pass a criminal background check successfully
• Maintain and share information according to privacy regulations
• Serve as a mandatory reporter of suspected abuse of vulnerable populations as required by policy and regulation
• Complete necessary work as assigned

Work Environment and Physical Demands

Eligibility Specialists typically work in an office environment. They must be able to:

• Use a computer, telephone, and other office equipment
• Tolerate and be able to work where the noise level is that of a typical office
• Encounter frequent interruptions throughout the work day
• Regularly sit, talk, or hear
• Use repetitive hand motions

• Handle objects and sustain a sense of touch
• Stand, walk, reach, and bend
• Lift up to 25 pounds
• This position requires occasional travel to consumers in a variety of settings, homes, facilities, etc. of varying levels of cleanliness and repair.  Field work requires driving an Agency car or personal vehicle, and carrying and using a laptop computer.

Contact with the public in home or office environments may risk exposure to people with contagious diseases or irrational/hostile behavior and contact with domestic animals.

The physical demands are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Classification: Eligibility Specialist / Bilingual Eligibility Specialist
Position Number: Varies
Salary Range: R19 / R20 (Bilingual)
FLSA Status: Non-Exempt
Unit: Aging and Disability Services
Location: Varies
Reports To: Program Manager
Union Status: Represented
Last Revision Date: January 2026

This job description serves as a general guide to the duties and responsibilities of the position and does not include every task or assignment. Employees may be required to perform other duties as needed, including temporary assignments in other offices or areas, and are expected to follow other job-related instructions from their manager.

Reasonable accommodations will be provided as needed.

Job descriptions are subject to change.