Health System Specialist

The Health System Specialist works in Care Management and Social Work Services (CMSW), which provides oversight and leadership for a vast array of clinical interventions and supportive programming across VHA for service members, Veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors through the coordination of care, services, and benefits afforded by VA programs and collaboration with partners.

Order of Referral: This announcement will close on 11/09/2026. Only the applications received up to 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the day that 75 applications is reached will be considered. Applications that are submitted after the initial cut-off number has been reached will not receive consideration unless otherwise requested by management.

This position serves as a Health System Specialist assigned to various programs and projects within Care Management and Social Work Services (CMSW). The Health System Specialist provides support to health care management officials by analyzing, evaluating, advising on, and/or coordinating health care delivery systems and operations. The Health System Specialist renders advice on operational policies and ensures these policies are coordinated with and in support of administrative functions. Additional duties include, but are not limited to:

• Serves as the primary liaison to multiple staff offices and manages assignments between them. Monitors incoming actions from initial receipt through completion and closeout, analyzes responses for completeness and accuracy against known policies and procedures, and ensures each action is closed out with the inquirer or office.
• Conducts analytical studies of operational processes, issue topics, and special projects, including study planning, statistical measurement, data analysis, and report preparation. Serves as the responsible contact for leading these projects from initiation to completion and presents results to senior leadership as required.
• Develops position papers and decision documents representing the organization's position on complex and sensitive issues, such as the quality or timeliness of Veteran care and issues of Congressional or media interest.
• Coordinates with internal reviewing services on complex audits and internal and external reviews of national concern, such as those conducted by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Tracks routine and uncommon deadlines and ensures timely submission of responses and actions.
• Works closely with senior management and others to implement and evaluate policies, plans, and internal operational systems, including correspondence management, information tracking among offices and stakeholders, and internal and external communication flows.
• Engages staff at all levels on operations-focused assignments and projects initiated by senior leadership, program offices, or departmental offices. Identifies substantive issues, establishes priorities, determines which issues require tracking, and coordinates regular committee and board meetings.
• Coordinates events hosted by officials, including town hall meetings with internal staff. Responsibilities include selecting event times, developing formal agendas, managing contracts and logistics, disseminating information to attendees, and ensuring smooth execution.
• Manages and coordinates online communication tools, such as assigned intranet websites and the internal SharePoint website collection, in consultation with communication specialists, and ensures compliance with applicable policies.
• Develops proposals and supporting materials for presentation at conferences, meetings, hearings, and other external activities. Reviews and analyzes materials with the originating offices and briefs senior management in preparation for these events.
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Telework: This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
Virtual: This position may be authorized for Virtual Work. Virtual Work eligibility is for current VA employees that are already subject to the return to in person work mandate and highly qualified candidates with assigned space to work in-person from an agency worksite.
Definition of Virtual Work: Employee works outside of original hiring duty station at a VA-owned or leased space.
Return to Office (RTO): RTO mandates are in effect and selectees will be required to report to in-person work unless they are approved for an exception or an exemption. Any approval for an RTO exception, exemption, or extension will happen after a tentative job offer, but before a final job offer.
Position Description/PD#: Health System Specialist/PD032800
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11/09/2026.

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-13 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-12. 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. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

Note: This occupational series has an Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR).
Individual Occupational Requirements (IORs) are requirements e.g., experience or education, for particular occupational series or positions within a series and are used in conjunction with a group coverage (generic) standard.

This position's IOR is:
Education: To qualify for the Health System Specialist position, you must possess an Undergraduate or Graduate degree in hospital administration, public health administration, or related fields such as business or public administration with course work in health care administration.

OR,
Specialized Experience: Progressively responsible analytical or administrative, or clinical management or supervisory experience in the health care field. This work may have been performed in an operating health care facility or a higher organizational echelon with advisory or directional authority over such facilities. Work must have involved a close working relationship with facility managers and analysis and/or coordination of administrative, clinical, or other service activities, and provided knowledge of the following:

• Missions, organizations, programs, and requirements of health care delivery systems;
• Regulations and standards of various regulatory and credentialing groups; and
• Government-wide, agency, and facility systems and requirements in various administrative areas such as budget, personnel, and procurement.

OR,
Special Provision for Inservice Placement: Successful completion of an agency-sponsored on-the-job training program may be substituted for qualifying experience, provided it included a formal individualized training plan. Such a training program must have been conducted in an operating health care system and included:

• Assignments providing a knowledge of basic health system administration philosophies, practices, and procedures, and basic government administrative policies and requirements;
• Practical assignments providing an opportunity to apply health system administration skills and principles (as the individual progresses, work assignments must be characteristic of the grade level to which he or she is assigned); and
• Oversight by an experienced health system administrator with periodic evaluation of the individual's progress and appropriate adjustment of the training program.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-12 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. ???????This experience must demonstrate the ability to independently investigate complex health care management issues, analyze problems using qualitative and/or quantitative methods, and present both written and oral recommendations that take into account the factors affecting the management of health care delivery systems. Examples include conducting special studies or analyses of operational processes, developing position papers or decision documents, and briefing senior leaders on findings and recommendations.

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/.

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.