Certified Application Counselor/FE-ABD, Bureau of Equitable Health Systems

Established in , the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (the NYC Health Department) is the oldest and largest health department in the country. Our mission is to protect and improve the health of all New Yorkers, in service of a vision of a city in which all New Yorkers can realize their full health potential, regardless of who they are, how old they are, where they are from, or where they live.

As a world-renowned public health agency with a history of building transformative public health programming and infrastructure, innovating in science and scholarship to advance public health knowledge, and responding to urgent public health crises from New York City’s yellow fever outbreak in , to the COVID-19 pandemic we are a hub for public health innovation, expertise, and programs, and services. We serve as the population health strategist, and policy, and planning authority for the City of New York, while also having a vast impact on national and international public policy, including programs and services focused on food and nutrition, anti-tobacco support, chronic disease prevention, HIV/AIDS treatment, family and child health, environmental health, mental health, and racial and social justice work, among others.

Our Agency’s five strategic priorities, building off a recently-completed strategic planning process emerging from the COVID-19 emergency, are:
1) To re-envision how the Health Department prepares for and responds to health emergencies, with a focus on building a “response-ready” organization, with faster decision-making, transparent public communications, and stronger surveillance and bridges to healthcare systems 2) Address and prevent chronic and diet-related disease, including addressing rising rates of childhood obesity and the impact of diabetes, and transforming our food systems to improve nutrition and enhance access to healthy foods
3) Address the second pandemic of mental illness including: reducing overdose deaths, strengthening our youth mental health systems, and supporting people with serious mental illness
4) Reduce black maternal mortality and make New York a model city for women’s health
5) Mobilize against and combat the health impacts of climate change

Our 7,-plus team members bring extraordinary diversity to the work of public health. True to our value of equity as a foundational element of all of our work, and a critical foundation to achieving population health impact in New York City, the NYC Health Department has been a leader in recognizing and dismantling racism’s impacts on the health of New Yorkers and beyond. In , the NYC Board of Health declared racism as a public health crisis. With commitment to advance anti-racist public health practices that dismantle systems that perpetuate inequitable power, opportunity and access, the NYC Health Department continues to work in and with communities and community organizations to increase their access to health services and decrease avoidable health outcomes.

PROGRAM AND JOB DESCRIPTION:
The Center for Health Equity & Community Wellness CHECW) uses a racial and social justice approach to eliminate health inequities for those who are most marginalized in New York City and to reduce over all premature mortality from the leading causes of preventable death with the vision that every New Yorker will live in a thriving neighborhood with equitable access to resources that help support healthy individuals and communities. This division unifies and strengthens the Department's lines of work directed at eliminating racial inequities for preventable health conditions, which are rooted in historical and contemporary injustices and discrimination including racism. The Bureau of Equitable Health Systems (BEHS) is the healthcare systems bureau of DOHMH situated within CHECW and supporting the strategic plan and vision of the Chief Medical Officer. Our mission is to apply policy, evidence, and practical expertise to improve equity in health care delivery at the individual, organizational, financing, and systems levels. We aim to operationalize the Board of Health's resolution of Racism as a Public Health Crisis by addressing structural racism and intersectional inequities embedded within the healthcare delivery system.

BEHS includes the Office of Health Insurance Services (OHIS), which provides community-facing programs and on the ground programmatic work that maximizes health insurance coverage opportunities and increases access to healthcare and social support services such as assistance with SNAP applications to address food insecurities for all New Yorkers. OHIS is currently involved in a few high priority community initiatives and has partnered with the Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA), New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA), New York City Department for the Aging (DFTA), and Community based Organizations. To ensure full compliance of these partnerships we are seeking a Community Coordinator to serve as Certified Application Counselor/Aged, Blind and Disabled Facilitated Enroller. Under general direction, with wide latitude for independent initiative and judgement, the Community Coordinators will established collaborative working relationships with other city agencies and community based organizations within New York City's non-English native speaking communities and perform very responsible work in the supervision, planning, implementation, coordination, monitoring and/or evaluation of community development programs/project initiatives.

DUTIES WILL INCLUDE BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO:
Participate in outreach events to raise awareness about available services and assist community residents in overcoming barriers to meeting access to their healthcare needs. OHIS partners with DOHMH Article 28 clinics, Early Intervention Program and other DOHMH programs; community and faith-based organizations; the NYC Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA), Department for Aging (DTA), NYC Human Resources Administration (HRA) and the GetCOVeredNYC Public Engagement Unit (PEU).

Conduct health insurance enrollment activity and administer the processing of incoming phone calls and the receipt of referrals received from community residents, community based partners, internal/external agency programs and special projects for the OHIS program (e.g., Public Engagement Unit, Consumer Contract Center, Early Intervention Program, Neighborhood Health Corps., Asylum Seekers, and DIS TB- Unified Electronic Medical Records). Educate clients about health insurance products; insurance affordability programs; and resources for government benefit programs including Medicaid Excess Income, Medicare Savings, Waiver Services and SNAP (food stamps). Provide an overview of the application process and explain required documentation necessary to submit the application.

Fully utilize the tools provided by the New York State of Health (NYSOH) Marketplace, NYC HRA, and other consumer interface portal systems to implement processing of the application.

Utilize electronic reporting tools (e.g., Marketplace, MAPSng, HICASTS, Salesforce and ACCESSNYC) to record daily activities, case manage and track all applications until eligibility/coverage is determined by the NYS of Health Marketplace and HRA. Work collaboratively with Site Supervisor to work on special project, resolve issues, pool resources, and ensure the effective delivery of services to the community.

***IMPORTANT NOTES TO ALL CANDIDATES:

Please note: If you are called for an interview, you will be required to bring to your interview copies of original documentation, such as:
- A document that establishes identity for employment eligibility, such as: A Valid U.S. Passport, Permanent Resident Card/Green Card, or Driver’s license.

- Proof of Education according to the education requirements of the civil service title.

- Current Resume

- Proof of Address/NYC Residency dated within the last 60 days, such as: Recent Utility Bill (i.e. Telephone, Cable, Mobile Phone)

Additional documentation may be required to evaluate your qualification as outlined in this posting’s “Minimum Qualification Requirements” section. Examples of additional documentation may be, but not limited to: college transcript, experience verification or professional trade licenses.

If after your interview you are the selected candidate you will be contacted to schedule an on-boarding appointment. By the time of this appointment you will be asked to produce the originals of the above documents along with your original Social Security card.

**LOAN FORGIVENESS

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at StudentAid.gov/PSLF.

"FINAL APPOINTMENTS ARE SUBJECT TO OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT & BUDGET APPROVAL”

Minimum Qualifications

1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and two years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties described above; or
2. High school graduation or equivalent and six years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties as described above; or
3. Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least one year of experience as described in "1" above.

Preferred Skills
Experience working directly with individuals from diverse racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgroundsExcellent oral presentation skillsExperience working with community-based organizationsExcellent computer skillsCertified Application Counselor experience a plusExperience with the aged, blind and/or disabled populations a plusProficiency in languages other than English a plus.
Residency Requirement
New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

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