Overview This guide reviews one of two configurations for the Elation-Kareo integration. This version of the integration is for customers who want insurance information to be uni-directrional from Kareo to Elation and want appointment information to sync from Kareo to Elation. View the Elation-Kareo Integration Guide- Using Elation as the source of truth for demographics and appointments article if you want to complete patient intake and track appointments in Elation.
What is Kareo?
Kareo® is a Practice Management and Medical Billing Solution software that practices can use alongside Elation. Practices most commonly use Kareo to submit claims to Payers for services rendered and track the progress of claim payments.What is the Elation-Kareo integration?
The Elation-Kareo integration allows practices to send claims-related data from Elation to Kareo for practices to submit claims to Payers (through Kareo) for services rendered in Elation. The Elation-Kareo integration reduces the need for double documenting in two softwares and allows practices to store all their clinical data in Elation while using Kareo side-by-side to manage their revenue.Important Information : This guide reviews one of two configurations for the Elation-Kareo integration. This version of the integration is for customers who want insurance information to be uni-directrional from Kareo to Elation and want appointment information to sync from Kareo to Elation. View the Elation-Kareo Integration Guide- Using Elation as the source of truth for demographics and appointments article if you want to complete patient intake and track appointments in Elation.
How do I get started?
You must first have an account with Kareo before you can use this integration. Once you have worked with Kareo to set up your account, you can request to turn on the Kareo integration by clicking I need help -> Contact Elation Support.Mapping Providers
Each Provider level user must have an account in both Elation and Kareo in order for Elation to be able to map patient data across the two systems. Please work with Elation and Kareo to make sure you have the correct accounts needed for the integration.Mapping Provider Calendars
Provider Calendars in both Elation and Kareo are tied to Provider level user accounts. Each Provider Calendar in Kareo must have a matching Provider Calendar in Elation in order for appointments to push from Kareo to Elation. Please work with Elation and Kareo to make sure you have the correct accounts needed for the Provider Calendars you have in the two systems.Mapping Practice Locations
Each Practice Location in Elation must be mapped to a Service Location in Kareo in order for your Bills to push from Elation to Kareo. Follow these steps to map your Elation Practice Location to the corresponding Service Location in Kareo:- Sign in to your Elation account and click on your email address at the top of your account
- Go to “Settings” >> “Practice Locations”
- Click the “Edit” button next to the Practice Location you want to map
- Select a POS code and Kareo name for the Practice Location
- Click “Save”
What information is synchronized?
The following information is synchronized between Elation and Kareo for this version of the integration:| Data | Sync Direction |
|---|---|
| Patient Charts | Elation ↔ Kareo |
| Demographics | Elation ↔ Kareo |
| Insurance | Kareo → Elation |
| Appointments | Kareo → Elation |
| Bills | Elation → Kareo |
Patient Charts
Creating Charts Patient charts can be created in either system because Patient Demographics is bi-directional. Creating a patient chart in one system will also create the patient chart in the other system.Merging Charts
Each chart can only have a one to one connection between Elation and Kareo and this connection is established upon chart creation. If you happen to see a duplicate chart for the same patient in either system, please make sure you find the chart that is connected between the two systems and keep the connected chart after performing a merge.- For example, patient John Smith has one chart in Kareo but two charts in Elation. The best way to find out which of the two charts in Elation is connected to Kareo is by updating one of the connected demographics fields in Kareo to see which of the two charts in Elation receives the update. The chart that receives the update must be the chart that you keep in Elation when performing a chart merge.
- Open the duplicate chart that is not connected to the integration
- Click on the patient’s name to open their Demographics
- Click on the “Merge Chart” button
- Find & select the chart you want to keep (the one that is connected to the integration)
- Click “Merge Chart”
- Confirm you understand the transfer of data and then click “Yes, merge charts”
Deleting Charts
Deleting a chart in Elation will not delete the chart in Kareo. Please take caution when deleting charts in Elation while using the Kareo integration as charts have a one to one connection via the integration. If the patient is still active in your practice, the deleted chart must be restored in order for the patient’s information to sync properly across the two systems. Contact Elation using the “I need help” button if you need to restore a deleted chart.Patient Demographics
The synchronization of Patient Demographics is bi-directional. Any changes made in one system will be pushed to the other system. The following table shows a mapping of the Patient Demographics fields that are shared between Elation and Kareo and their matching field names.| Elation Field Name | Kareo Field Name |
|---|---|
| Legal First Name | First name |
| Middle Name | M |
| Legal Last Name | Last name |
| Date of birth | DOB |
| Sex at Birth | Sex |
| Phone- Home , Mobile or Work type only (and up to 2 only) | Home Phone, Mobile Phone or Work Phone (depending on what is stored in Elation) |
| Personal Email | |
| Address | Address Line 1 |
| Ste or apt # | Address Line 2 |
| City | City |
| State | State/Province |
| Zip | Zip/Postal Code |
| Provider assigned in practice | Primary Provider |
Insurance
The synchronization of insurance information is uni-directional from Kareo to Elation. Practices must enter insurance information in the Account >> Insurance section of the patient’s chart in Kareo in order for the insurance information to push to Elation.Kareo uses a feature called an Insurance Case to store insurance policy information. Each period or type of insurance coverage in Kareo should be tied to its own Insurance Case . For example: If patient John Smith has medical coverage and separate insurance for an automobile accident, John Smith should have two Insurance Cases in Kareo, one Insurance Case for his personal medical insurance and the other Insurance Case for his automobile accident insurance. Make sure you set the primary Insurance Caseas the the one you wish to share with Elation.If patient Jane Doe has Aetna® insurance from 1/1/2021 to 12/31/2021 and then changes to Blue Cross® beginning 1/1/2022 then Jane Doe should have two Insurance Cases in Kareo, one Insurance Case for Aetna that is marked as “Inactive” and one Insurance Case for Blue Cross that is the new primary, active Insurance Case.
| Kareo Field Name | Elation Field Name |
|---|---|
| Plan Name | Plan name |
| Company Name (*hidden behind Plan Name in Kareo) | Insurance carrier name |
| Policy Number | Member ID |
| Group Number | Group ID |
| Copay Amount | Copay |
| Deductible Amount | Deductible |
| Relationship to Primary Policy Holder | Patient’s relation to policyholder |
| Insured Name | First Name & Last Name |
| Street Address | Address |
| City | City |
| State | State |
| Zip | Zip |
| SSN | SSN |
| DOB | Date of birth |
| Gender | Sex at birth |
Carriers & Plans
Insurance Carriers and plans details should only be maintained in Kareo as Kareo is the source of truth for insurance and Kareo can store more detailed information about Payers such as the Payer ID. It is most important for you to create Plans in Kareo (especially when it is for a Payer you already send claims to in Kareo) to avoid creating duplicate Payers in Kareo. After the Carrier or Plan is created in Kareo and it is added to a patient’s chart in Kareo, the Carrier and Plan will push over to your Insurance Settings page in Elation. If you need to add a new Insurance Company or Plan to your Kareo database, follow the instructions in this article.Adding insurance information
For patients who do not have any active insurance information in Kareo, follow the appropriate steps below to add insurance to their chart in Kareo (which then pushes the insurance information over to Elation):| Kareo Web Browser Application | Kareo Windows PC Desktop Application |
|---|---|
| Open the patient’s chart in Kareo • Go to “Account” >> “Insurance” • Click**”+ Add New Insurance Case” to add an Insurance Case • Go to the Policy #1: New Insurance section and fill in the patient’s primary insurance policy information. • Click the “Save Policy” button once you have filled in all the information for the insurance policy you are adding • If the patient has secondary insurance coverage, click “+Add Another Policy” to add their Secondary Insurance information to the case. • Click “Save & Finish” at the very bottom of the page to save the case after you have added all the policies to the case | Open the patient’s chart in Kareo • Go to Cases • Click**“Add…” to add a Case • Go to the Insurance section and click “Add” to add a new insurance policy to theCase • If the patient has secondary insurance coverage, click “Add..” again to add their Secondary Insurance information to the case. • Click “Save” at the very bottom of the New Case window to save the case after you have added all the policies to the case • Click “Save” at the very bottom of the Edit Patient window to save your changes to the patient’s chart |
Correcting insurance information
If policy information was entered incorrectly follow the steps below to make corrections as needed in Kareo (which then updates the insurance information in Elation):| Kareo Web Browser Application | Kareo Windows PC Desktop Application |
|---|---|
| Locate the patient’s chart in Kareo • Go to “Account” >> “Insurance” • Click the “Edit” button next to the Insurance Case that is tied to the insurance policy • Click the “Edit” button next to the Policy you need to edit • Make the appropriate changes • Click “Save Policy” to save your changes to the policy information • Click “Save & Finish” to save your changes to the Case | Locate the patient’s chart in Kareo • Go to “Cases” • Select the Case with the policy that needs corrections • Click the “Edit…” button • Select the Insurance Policy that needs corrections • Click the “Edit…” button • Make the appropriate changes • Click “Save” to save your changes to the policy information • Click “Save” on the Case to save your changes to the Case • Click “Save” at the very bottom of the Edit Patient window to save your changes to the patient’s chart |
Updating insurance information with new policy
If all of the patient’s policies within a given Insurance Case are no longer in effect, (ex. patient’s old Primary & Secondary insurances changed), follow the steps listed below to mark the old policy as inactive and then add the new policies to the patient’s chart. The new policy information will replace the old policy information in Elation. Use the Update insurance information with new policy section if you are replacing an inactive insurance policy with an active one. Kareo Web Browser Application Kareo Windows PC Desktop ApplicationMaking an Insurance Case inactive in Kareo will delete all of the Primary and Secondary insurance information in the Elation chart. Only make an Insurance Case inactive in Kareo if the insurance policies tied to the case are no longer in effect.
- Locate the patient’s chart in Kareo
- Go to “Account” >> “Insurance”
- Click the “Edit” button next to the Insurance Case that is tied to the insurance policy
- Change the “Status” to “Inactive” & click “Save & Finish”
-
Making an Insurance Case inactive in Kareo will delete all of the Primary and Secondary insurance information in the Elation chart. Only make an Insurance Case inactive in Kareo if the insurance policies tied to the case are no longer in effect.
- Follow the Adding insurance information steps to add the new insurance policy information to the patient’s chart in Kareo
Making a Case inactive in Kareo will delete all of the Primary and Secondary insurance information in the Elation chart. Only make a Case inactive in Kareo if the insurance policies tied to the case are no longer in effect.
- Locate the patient’s chart in Kareo
- Go to “Cases”
- Select the Case that you want to mark as inactive
- Click “Edit…”
- Uncheck the Active? Box
-
Making a Case inactive in Kareo will delete all of the Primary and Secondary insurance information in the Elation chart. Only make a Case inactive in Kareo if the insurance policies tied to the case are no longer in effect.
- Click “Save” to save you changes to the Case
- Click “Save” at the very bottom of the Edit Patient window to save your changes to the patient’s chart
- Follow the Adding insurance information steps to add the new insurance policy information to the patient’s chart in Kareo
Removing an inactive insurance policy from a list of policies
If the patient has both a Primary and Secondary insurance policy and one of them are no longer in effect, you can remove the inactive policy from their chart (ex. patient’s Secondary insurance is no longer in effect) by following the steps listed below. The inactive policy will be removed from Elation. Use the Update insurance information with new policy section if you are replacing an inactive insurance policy with an active one.| Kareo Web Browser Application | Kareo Windows PC Desktop Application |
|---|---|
| Locate the patient’s chart in Kareo • Go to “Account” >> “Insurance” • Click the “Edit” button next to the Insurance Case that is tied to the insurance policy • Click the “Edit” button next to the policy that is no longer in effect • Enter the policy end effective date in the Policy End field • Update the Status to “Inactive” • Click “Save Policy” to save your changes on the policy • Click “Save & Finish” to save your changes on the Insurance Case. | Locate the patient’s chart in Kareo • Go to “Cases” • Select the Case with the policy that is no longer in effect • Click the “Edit…” button • Select the Insurance Policy that is no longer in effect • Click the “Edit…” button • Enter the policy end effective date in theEffective End field • Uncheck the Active? box • Click “Save” to save your changes to the policy information • Click “Save” on the Case to save your changes to the Case • Click “Save” at the very bottom of the Edit Patient window to save your changes to the patient’s chart |
Removing all inactive policies
If all of the patient’s policies within a give Insurance Case are no longer in effect, (ex. patient’s Primary & Secondary insurances are no longer in effect), follow the steps listed below to mark the insurance case as inactive which removes the insurance information from the patient’s chart in Elation. Use the Update insurance information with new policy section if you are replacing an inactive insurance policy with an active one. Kareo Web Browser Application Kareo Windows PC Desktop ApplicationMaking an Insurance Case inactive in Kareo will delete all of the Primary and Secondary insurance information in the Elation chart. Only make an Insurance Case inactive in Kareo if the insurance policies tied to the case are no longer in effect.
- Locate the patient’s chart in Kareo
- Go to “Account” >> “Insurance”
- Click the “Edit” button next to the Insurance Case that is tied to the insurance policy
- Change the “Status” to “Inactive” & click “Save & Finish”
-
Making an Insurance Case inactive in Kareo will delete all of the Primary and Secondary insurance information in the Elation chart. Only make an Insurance Case inactive in Kareo if the insurance policies tied to the case are no longer in effect.
Making a Case inactive in Kareo will delete all of the Primary and Secondary insurance information in the Elation chart. Only make a Case inactive in Kareo if the insurance policies tied to the case are no longer in effect.
- Locate the patient’s chart in Kareo
- Go to “Cases”
- Select the Case with the policy that is no longer in effect
- Click the “Edit…” button
- Uncheck the Active? box
-
Making a Case inactive in Kareo will delete all of the Primary and Secondary insurance information in the Elation chart. Only make a Case inactive in Kareo if the insurance policies tied to the case are no longer in effect.
- Click “Save” on the Case to save your changes to the Case
- Click “Save” at the very bottom of the Edit Patient window to save your changes to the patient’s chart
Appointments
The synchronization of appointments is uni-directional from Kareo to Elation. Practices must enter and edit appointments in Kareo for the appointment to push to the corresponding Provider calendar in Elation. The instructions in this article will show you how you can add appointments to Kareo. Appointments added to Elation will not appear in Kareo. Edits to appointments in Elation will not appear in Kareo either. The following table lists the Appointment fields that are pushed from Kareo to Elation and show how the Kareo fields map to the Elation fields. Fields that are not listed are not shared between the Elation and Kareo:| Kareo Field Name | Elation Field Name |
|---|---|
| Patient | Patient name |
| Visit Reason | Description - chief complaint (CC) |
| Start Date | Date |
| Start Time | Start time |
| Duration | Duration |
| Provider | Provider |
Bills
The synchronization of bills is uni-directional from Elation to Kareo. Once a provider signs a visit note in Elation, the billing information in the visit note will be pushed to Kareo as a Charge. The following table lists the fields that are pushed from Elation to Kareo and show how the Kareo fields map to the Elation fields. Field that are not listed are not shared between Elation and Kareo.| Elation Field Name | Kareo Field Name |
|---|---|
| CPT | Procedure Code |
| Modifier | Mod |
| Charge | Charge |
| Qty | Units |
| Dx | Diagnosis |
| Service Location (POS) | Service Location & Place of Service |
| Additional Billing Notes | Notes |
Kareo will only ingest the first 12 diagnosis codes (ICD-10 codes) entered in Elation. If different ICD-10 codes were used for different service lines, Kareo will ingest up to 4 ICD-10s per service line and then ingest the remainder of the ICD-10 codes (but only up to 12 total)Procedure Codes, ICD-10 codes and Modifiers used in Elation must be in the Kareo database in order for Kareo to accept the charges. You will see a Bill Error if the code you added is not in Kareo. Reference the following articles if you need to add additional codes to your Kareo database:
Getting Support
Kareo
If you need assistance with your Kareo configuration or have questions about the Kareo Windows PC Desktop Application or Web Browser Application, contact Kareo here: https://helpme.kareo.com/Contact_UsElation
If you need assistance with Elation or the Elation-Kareo integration, contact Elation using the I need help -> Contact Elation Support button at the top of your Elation account.Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How long does it take for information to synchronize between the two systems?
Information between Elation and Kareo usually synchronizes within a few seconds but can take up to 5 minutes depending on how busy the servers are.I created a patient chart in one system but the patient chart did not surface in the other system. What should I do?
We recommend making an update to the demographics in the system you originally created the chart in to trigger another connection between the two systems. If you are using the Kareo Windows PC Desktop Application, make sure you click the “Save” button at the bottom of the Edit Patientwindow after making any changes to the patient’s Kareo chart (demographics, cases or insurance) to save the changes and push the changes to Elation. If you continue to run into synchronization issues, use the I need help -> Contact Elation Support button at the top of your Elation account to reach our Support Team for further assistance.I see duplicate charts for a patient. What should I do?
Review the Merging Charts section of this article to understand how to correct for duplicate charts issues.I updated/added demographics information to a patient’s chart but the information did not synchronize between Elation and Kareo. What should I do?
We recommend making an update to the demographics again in the system you originally made edits in to trigger another connection between the two systems. If you are using the Kareo Windows PC Desktop Application, make sure you click the “Save” button at the bottom of the Edit Patientwindow after making any changes to the patient’s Kareo chart (demographics, cases or insurance) to save the changes and push the changes to Elation. If you continue to run into synchronization issues, use the I need help -> Contact Elation Support button at the top of your Elation account to reach our Support Team for further assistance.Can I update billing information in Elation after sending it to Kareo?
The default behavior is that billing information is sent to Kareo after a provider signs the corresponding visit note in Elation. Once billing information is sent to Kareo, you must make updates manually in both Elation and Kareo. Changes or updates in Elation will not automatically be pushed to Kareo. If you prefer to have extra time to review and update billing information after signing the visit note, you can use the Delayed Billing feature to hold bills in Elation and manually send them to Kareo once the billing information is complete. Learn more about the Delayed Billing feature in this Billing Guide- Delayed Billing.I received a “Bill Error” after trying to send charge details from Elation to Kareo. Why?
There are a few common reasons why you may receive a “Bill Error” after attempting to send a charge from Elation to Kareo:- There are missing CPT Codes or ICD-10 codes on service lines
- There are invalid CPT Codes, ICD-10 codes or Modifiers on service lines
- The CPT Codes, ICD-10 codes or Modifiers you added to Elation is not in your Kareo database. Reference the following articles if you need to add additional codes to your Kareo database:
- You selected a Practice Location in Elation that is not mapped to a Kareo Service Location. Follow the instructions in the Map Practice Locations section to map your practice locations.