How to move client balances between EHRs
To move client balances between EHRs, run an aging report in the old system, decide whether each balance moves as an opening balance or is finished in the old system, then move the balances you choose at cutover with a note that points back to the old record. Keep payment history as read-only documents, and check that the total of all client balances matches in both systems after the move.
- Client balances usually move as one opening balance per client, not as every past charge and payment.
- Payment history and statements can stay readable as documents or in read-only access to the old system.
- The total of client balances in the old system should match the new system after cutover, and any gap needs a written reason.
What billing data moves, and in what form?
| Item | Often moves as | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Client balance | One opening balance per client, with a note | Totals match in both systems |
| Payment history | A statement or ledger document, or read-only access to the old system | Staff can find a past payment when a client asks |
| Saved payment cards | Often not moved, depending on what the new system can accept | Clients know if they need to add a card again |
| Insurance and payer details | Structured fields | Active clients have the right payer and policy |
| Open claims | Often finished in the old system | No claim goes out from both systems |
Open claims follow their own plan. Ask your billing lead which claims stay in the old system until they are paid or closed.
Why move an opening balance instead of every transaction?
Every system records charges, payments and adjustments differently, so line-by-line history rarely maps cleanly. One opening balance per client, with a note such as the date and the old system's account reference, gives the front desk the number it needs. The detail stays readable in the old system or in an exported statement.
How do you move client balances step by step?
Step 1: Clean up balances in the old system
Post any payments waiting to be entered, fix credits that belong to the wrong client and write off amounts your practice has already decided not to collect. How to clean up EHR data before a migration covers the wider cleanup.
Step 2: Run an aging report
Run a client balance or aging report in the old system and save it. This is your starting point for the reconciliation.
Step 3: Decide where each balance is finished
Agree with your billing lead which balances move to the new system and which are finished in the old one, for example balances tied to open claims.
Step 4: Map the opening balance
Map the client, the amount, the as-of date and a note field in the field mapping. Decide how credits, meaning money owed back to clients, will show.
Step 5: Move balances at cutover
Run the final aging report right after the data freeze, then move balances as of that time, so no payment is counted twice.
Step 6: Reconcile the totals
Compare the total of client balances and the number of clients with a balance in both systems. Record any difference and its reason in the reconciliation report.
What should the billing lead check after go-live?
- A sample of client balances match the old aging report.
- Credits show as credits, not as amounts owed.
- Statements from the new system show the opening balance clearly.
- Payments taken after go-live are entered only in the new system.
What to check after EHR cutover and go-live lists the wider checks.
Frequently asked questions
Do client balances transfer when you switch EHRs?
Usually as one opening balance per client, as of the cutover time. The full charge and payment history stays readable in the old system or as an exported statement.
Should payment history move to the new EHR?
Line-by-line payment history rarely maps cleanly between systems. Keep it readable as a document or through read-only access to the old system.
When should balances move?
At cutover, right after the data freeze and the final aging report, so payments are not counted in both systems.
How does Ferry handle balances?
Ferry includes balances and open claims in scoping, moves balances with clear notes and reconciles the totals in the reconciliation report.
To plan the move of the schedule alongside balances, see how to move appointments between EHRs.
How Ferry helps
Ferry migrates data between behavioral health EHRs at a fixed price, with a reconciliation report for every record type. Get a migration quote.