Summary This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount up to $200,000 & eligibility period one to five years are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply. Responsibilities This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCMENT and will remain open until September 25, 2025. The initial cut-off date for referral of eligible applications will be August 8, 2025 with subsequent cut-off dates every 2 weeks. Eligible applications received after that date will be accepted on an ongoing basis and qualified candidates will be considered as vacancies become available. VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. VHA Physician Total Rewards. Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Authorized Work Schedule: Monday to Friday; 8:00am to 4:30pm Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Authorized Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): Learn more. EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact V21CCOEEDRP@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance Pay: Competitive salary, annual performance bonus, regular salary increases Paid Time Off: 50-55 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year and possible 5 day paid absence for CME) Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory CME: Possible $1,000 per year reimbursement (must be full-time with board certification) Malpractice: Free liability protection with tail coverage provided Contract: No Physician Employment Contract and no significant restriction on moonlighting The Physician (MD/DO) Chief of Compensation and Pension (C&P) Service is a member of the medical staff who practices under their approved clinical privileges. This position is aligned under the Office of the Chief of Staff. The C&P Service is a stand-alone department within the VA Northern California Healthcare System (NCHCS). The primary purpose of the C&P Service is to provide disability evaluations to Veterans referred by the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), and fitness-for-duty examinations to Active Service Members (SMs) who are based locally in California and Out-of-Continental US (OCONUS) in Korea, Guam and Japan, and who are referred by the Department of Defense (DoD) as part of the joint VHA/DoD IDES (Integrated Disability Evaluation System) Program. The incumbent manages NCHCS Environmental Hazards Registry (EHR) Programs, to include Agent Orange, Open Burn Pits, Ionizing Radiation, Depleted Uranium, Toxic Embedded Fragments and Gulf War-related. The Chief of C&P Service is responsible for the oversight of the department operations in all its aspects, to include immediate supervision of clinical and administrative staff, management of professional staff matters, technical training of medical personnel, monitoring, maintenance, analysis and tracking of all pertinent statistical information, and execution and management of fiscal requirements for C&P, IDES and EHR evaluations. The incumbent works to ensure timely, appropriate and comprehensive policy and planning; this includes workload and staffing projections, budget formulations, and the areas of patient satisfaction and cost-effective, efficient service delivery, among others. The incumbent directs and/or participates in the implementation of policies and procedures promulgated by Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and the Department of Defense (DoD), as applicable. The incumbent participates in the analytical review of all proposed regulations and directives, determining their effect on established procedures and their impact on the Compensation and Pension (C&P) Service; and reviews regulations and directives governing all phases of C&P activities to ensure their completeness and adequacy. The incumbent identifies delays, waste, and any other problems within the C&P process and develops ways to improve the timeliness, accuracy, or completeness of exams incorporating VHA Systems Redesign methodology. The incumbent develops internal metrics and productivity standards as well as tracking mechanisms of performance measures of Quality, Processing Time, and Sufficiency of documentation. Duties continued in Qualifications place holder Requirements Conditions of Employment U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. You may be required to serve a probationary period. 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 dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Must pass pre-employment physical examination. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). Qualifications Continued Duties: The Chief of C&P Service is the main liaison with VA Headquarters, NCHCS and Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 21 Senior and Executive Leadership, the Veterans Benefits Administration and other federal agencies, and the national Office of Disability and Medical Assessment (DMA) for C&P, IDES and EHR evaluations. The incumbent also maintains constant liaison with a variety of stakeholders. Contacts are numerous and include internal stakeholders within the C&P Service, and stakeholders external to the C&P Department such as Veterans and their families, employees and contractors of the VA Northern California Healthcare System, staff from other VA medical centers within VISN 21, Military Treatment Facilities, local and regional military sites, Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs), congressional offices, and other national VA and federal offices. The incumbent works closely with pertinent local, Federal, state, and national agencies to ensure maximum interchange of information necessary to accomplish the C&P Department's mission. In doing so, the incumbent will be responsible for drafting of all necessary reports and official issue briefs. Participates in conferences, meetings, and presents the NCHCS facility position on C&P matters. Although research is not a primary focus of this position, the Physician (MD/DO) Chief of Compensation and Pension (C&P) Service may assist in research projects conducted by the C&P Service and other Services and Section at the VA Northern California Healthcare System, to include engagement in data collection, development of proposals and grant applications and writing of articles for publication with the concurrence of the Chief of Staff and the facility Director. The incumbent also makes a significant and sustained contribution to the profession through participation in publications, active membership in local or national organizations and participation in committees or task forces related to the physician profession, as applicable. Qualifications: To qualify for this position, you must meet the basic requirements as well as any additional requirements (if applicable) listed in the job announcement. Applicants pending the completion of training or license requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Currently employed physician(s) in VA who met the requirements for appointment under the previous qualification standard at the time of their initial appointment are deemed to have met the basic requirements of the occupation. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Degree of doctor of medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from one of the schools approved by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the year in which the course of study was completed. Current, full and unrestricted license to practice medicine or surgery in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia. Residency Training: Physicians must have completed residency training, approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in an accredited core specialty training program leading to eligibility for board certification. (NOTE: VA physicians involved in academic training programs may be required to be board certified for faculty status.) Approved residencies are: (1) Those approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), b) OR [(2) Those approved by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA),OR (3) Other residencies (non-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of five years of verified practice in the United States), which the local Medical Staff Executive Committee deems to have provided the applicant with appropriate professional training and believes has exposed the physician to an appropriate range of patient care experiences. Residents currently enrolled in ACGME/AOA accredited residency training programs and who would otherwise meet the basic requirements for appointment are eligible to be appointed as "Physician Resident Providers" (PRPs). PRPs must be fully licensed physicians (i.e., not a training license) and may only be appointed on an intermittent or fee-basis. PRPs are not considered independent practitioners and will not be privileged; rather, they are to have a "scope of practice" that allows them to perform certain restricted duties under supervision. Additionally, surgery residents in gap years may also be appointed as PRPs. Proficiency in spoken and written English. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Physical Requirements: This position requires visual acuity, keen hearing, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. This position requires potentially long periods of continued walking, standing, stooping, sitting, bending, pulling, and pushing. Transferring patients and objects may be required. The incumbent may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don protective clothing in isolation situations or operative/invasive procedures. The incumbent may occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative secondary to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders. The incumbent must be a mature, flexible, sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations, able to shift priorities based on patient needs. Must complete annual Employee Health requirements, such as annual TB screening or testing, as a condition of employment. Education Degree of Doctor of Medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in allopathic medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from an institution whose accreditation was in place for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved schools are: Schools of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for the year in which the degree was granted, or Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation of the American Osteopathic Association for the year in which the degree was granted. For foreign medical graduates not covered in (1) or (2) above, facility officials must verify with the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) that the applicant has met requirements for certification, and must obtain a copy of the ECFMG certificate, if claimed by the applicant. [If the applicant does not claim an ECFMG certificate, facility officials must still confirm that the medical school meets (or met) ECFMG eligibility requirements for the year the candidate graduated.] NOTE: The Under Secretary of Health or designee in the VHA Central Office may approve the appointment under authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 of a physician graduate of a school of medicine not covered above if the candidate is to be assigned to a research, academic, or administrative position with no patient care responsibilities. The appointment will be made only in exceptional circumstances where the candidate's credentials clearly demonstrate high professional attainment or expertise in the specialty area. Additional Information This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
