How it runs for behavioral health practices
Clearing accounts are created for each processor, the TherapyNotes, SimplePractice or Valant payment report is mapped to them, payroll departments are mapped, and bank-feed rules are configured. Migrations include a parallel month.
What is accounting software setup and migration?
Accounting software setup is the configuration of a new ledger: chart of accounts, tax codes, bank feeds, items, users and apps. Migration is moving existing books from another platform or spreadsheet into that ledger so history, open items and balances carry across. Both end with a file that agrees to the old records and is ready for live posting.
What we handle for behavioral health practices
- Design a chart with revenue by payer type, adjustments by contract and cost by clinician
- Set up classes for programs and locations and provider tags for clinician-level reporting
- Create clearing accounts for each processor and map the practice-management payment report
- Map payroll departments and configure bank-feed rules for software and clearinghouse vendors
- Carry over opening balances and deferred revenue, with one parallel month before cut-over
The KPI that matters here
Cut-over finished with opening balances tied to the old system and the first close delivered on time.
Behavioral health compliance notes
HIPAA
Session notes, claims, ERAs and client ledgers are protected health information. We sign a BAA, staff are HIPAA-trained, access to the practice-management system is role-limited with MFA, and the accounting file receives batch totals and claim numbers rather than client names or diagnoses.
42 CFR Part 2
Records from a federally assisted substance-use disorder program carry stricter confidentiality rules than HIPAA alone, including specific consent before disclosure. For programs covered by Part 2, billing staff work only inside your system, no Part 2 record is exported to the ledger or to email, and any request for records is routed to your privacy officer.
Payer contracts and credentialing
Each payer contract sets allowed amounts by CPT code, timely-filing windows, telehealth rules and how recoupments are handled. We post adjustments by contract, log clinician credentialing effective dates so held sessions are billed once approved, and reconcile recoupments against the sessions they reverse rather than netting them silently.
Self-pay estimates and card on file
Self-pay and uninsured clients are entitled to a good faith estimate under the No Surprises Act, and card-on-file charges for copays and no-show fees require the client's written consent. We record estimates and consents with the client's financial arrangement, and our agents never take or store card numbers; charges run through your own processor.
Behavioral health software we work in
- QuickBooks Online
- Xero
- Stripe
- Gusto
- Bill.com
- TherapyNotes
- SimplePractice
- Valant
- Kipu
- All 50 platforms
More for behavioral health practices
Other services for behavioral health
Software setup and migration in other industries
Frequently asked questions
How should a behavioral health practice's chart of accounts be organized?
Revenue split into insurance by payer group, self-pay, out-of-network and EAP or contract work, with adjustments by contract shown against gross; clinician cost by provider type as cost of services; supervision, software, clearinghouse and telehealth as their own lines; and overhead grouped so rent by suite, marketing and insurance are visible. Clearing accounts per processor and classes per program complete it.
Should TherapyNotes or SimplePractice sync client detail into QuickBooks?
No. The practice-management system should remain the system of record for client ledgers, and posting client-level detail into the accounting file moves protected health information into a system that was not built to protect it. We post daily or weekly summaries by payer and payment type instead, and configure an export or integration only at that summary level.
What does the parallel month achieve?
For one month both the old file and the new file are maintained, so opening balances, deferred revenue, processor clearing accounts and payroll mapping are checked against a real close before the old system is retired. Differences are resolved during that month rather than discovered at year-end, and the first close in the new file arrives on the normal schedule.
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