Economic Consultant

Optum is a global organization that delivers care, aided by technology to help millions of people live healthier lives. The work you do with our team will directly improve health outcomes by connecting people with the care, pharmacy benefits, data and resources they need to feel their best. Here, you will find a culture guided by diversity and inclusion, talented peers, comprehensive benefits and career development opportunities. Come make an impact on the communities we serve as you help us advance health equity on a global scale. Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together. 

As part of Optum Insight Payment Integrity‘s Growth and Innovation team, the Senior Healthcare Economics Consultant will conduct analyses on large data sets to identify and evaluate potential areas for medical cost improvement. This role will be focused on advancing the medical spend insights capability by performing complex data queries to uncover relevant trends in healthcare claims for various clients. The Senior Consultant will also produce insightful data visualization dashboards to assist ideation teams in identifying billing trends and reimbursement anomalies worth solutioning for. This highly skilled individual will perform descriptive statistical analysis and provide findings, explanations, and conclusions, which will be used to create viable, real-world solutions in a complex health care landscape.

You’ll enjoy the flexibility to work remotely * from anywhere within the U.S. as you take on some tough challenges. 

Primary Responsibilities: 

• Design and develop complex data queries to create models for analyzing business opportunities and interpreting key drivers of health care trends (i.e. medical cost, utilization, etc.)
• Perform and participate in iterative analytical and investigative work in support of payment integrity initiatives
• Use data analytics to identify and gain consensus on approaches to address medical cost trends and payment vulnerabilities
• Apply critical thinking skills to anticipate questions from key stakeholders and consider all aspects of an analysis before completion
• Execute complex data analysis requests on behalf of enterprise partners and deliver actionable and easy to digest insights
• Develop data visualizations and dashboards to assist ideation teams in identification of billing trends and reimbursement anomalies
• Identify and remedy gaps in current processes/tools/standards of practice
• Review data extractions and analytics performed by others on the team and provide recommendations for improvement
• Build solid relationships within a matrixed organization
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver actionable data to internal and external business partners

You’ll be rewarded and recognized for your performance in an environment that will challenge you and give you clear direction on what it takes to succeed in your role as well as provide development for other roles you may be interested in. 

Required Qualifications: 

• 4+ years of experience in healthcare data analytics roles
• 1+ years of experience performing data analysis to identify trends and anomalies
• Experience communicating technical and methodological nuances to a non-technical audience
• Intermediate SQL programming skills (data querying, manipulation and transformation, complex joins across multiple sources, subquery, and summary reporting)
• Proven excellent critical thinking and problem-solving skills
• Proven solid focus on data integrity and quality assurance of work product
• Proven solid interpersonal skills and ability to interact collaboratively with internal business partners
• Proven ability to approach business objectives from a broad strategic perspective while also focusing on the details

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor‘s degree in computer science, mathematics, statistics, finance or related field
• Experience in payment integrity or revenue cycle management data analysis role
• Awareness of healthcare claims payment integrity products and claims data platforms
• Intermediate or higher level of proficiency in Tableau and/or Power BI

*All employees working remotely will be required to adhere to UnitedHealth Group’s Telecommuter Policy 

California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Washington, or Washington, D.C. Residents Only: The salary range for this role is $88,000 to $173,200 annually. Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to local labor markets, education, work experience, certifications, etc. UnitedHealth Group complies with all minimum wage laws as applicable. In addition to your salary, UnitedHealth Group offers benefits such as, a comprehensive benefits package, incentive and recognition programs, equity stock purchase and 401k contribution (all benefits are subject to eligibility requirements). No matter where or when you begin a career with UnitedHealth Group, you’ll find a far-reaching choice of benefits and incentives.

Application Deadline: This will be posted for a minimum of 2 business days or until a sufficient candidate pool has been collected. Job posting may come down early due to volume of applicants.

At UnitedHealth Group, our mission is to help people live healthier lives and make the health system work better for everyone. We believe everyone–of every race, gender, sexuality, age, location and income–deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life. Today, however, there are still far too many barriers to good health which are disproportionately experienced by people of color, historically marginalized groups and those with lower incomes. We are committed to mitigating our impact on the environment and enabling and delivering equitable care that addresses health disparities and improves health outcomes — an enterprise priority reflected in our mission.   

Diversity creates a healthier atmosphere: UnitedHealth Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law. 

UnitedHealth Group is a drug - free workplace. Candidates are required to pass a drug test before beginning employment.