For Medical Assistants ·
What you'll accomplish
By the end of this guide, you'll have a personalized Claude Project that acts as your on-call reference assistant — with your practice's payer requirements, common protocols, and template library loaded in. Instead of hunting through binders, payer portals, and email threads, you'll ask a question and get an instant answer.
What you'll need
Go to claude.ai and create a free account, then click "Upgrade to Pro" for $20/month. Claude Pro includes the Projects feature, which is what makes this guide work.
What you should see: After upgrading, you'll see a "Projects" option in the left sidebar. Troubleshooting: If you don't see Projects immediately, log out and back in.
Click "Projects" in the left sidebar → "Create project." Name it "MA Reference — [Your Practice Name]." Add a brief description: "Medical assistant reference: payer requirements, common protocols, templates."
What you should see: An empty project with an "Add content" area and a chat interface.
You'll upload text-based reference content to the project. Start collecting these (no patient names or data):
Create a simple text document with each category. Example:
PRIOR AUTH REQUIREMENTS — TOP PAYERS (as of March 2026)
UnitedHealthcare:
- MRIs (spine, brain, MSK): Prior auth required for all
- PFTs: PA required; clinical notes supporting asthma/COPD must be included
- Physical therapy: PA required after first 12 visits
- PA phone: [number] | Fax: [number] | Portal: myuhc.com/providers
Aetna:
- Cardiology referrals: PA required for stress tests, echos
- Dermatology: PA for Mohs surgery and phototherapy
- PA phone: [number] | Portal: availity.com
In your Claude Project, click "Add content" → paste or upload your text documents. Claude stores these in the project context — every conversation in this project will have access to this information.
What you should see: Your documents appear listed in the project's knowledge section. Troubleshooting: If upload fails, paste the text directly into the "Add content" text box rather than uploading a file.
Click "Project instructions" (or the settings gear). Add:
You are a helpful reference assistant for a medical assistant at a primary care practice. Use the documents in this project to answer questions about payer prior authorization requirements, office protocols, and common clinical codes. When drafting letters or templates, use professional medical language. Always note if information may have changed since the documents were last updated.
Start a conversation in the project. Try these test questions:
What you should see: Claude answers using your uploaded documents, citing the specific requirements you entered. It will tell you if something isn't in your documents.
Payer requirement lookup:
What does [insurer] require for a prior authorization for [procedure/service]? Do we need clinical notes? What's their fax number?
Code lookup:
What ICD-10 code should we use for [describe the diagnosis/complaint]? List primary and any relevant secondary codes.
Protocol check:
A patient is calling saying [situation]. What's the protocol for handling this? What do I need to document?
Draft a response:
A patient sent a portal message: "[paste their question]". Draft a professional, empathetic response I can edit and send.
Quick reference:
Give me the contact information for [insurer]'s prior authorization department — phone and fax numbers.