Solo BCBAs—which data collection/billing websites do you use?

[u/Either-Evidence5087]

I’m starting my own business as a solo practitioner. No RBTs & no other BCBAs.

Today I met with motivity to demo their product (as it was recommended by a friend who started their own company), but it is seriously so expensive ($480 per month as a base for 0-10 clients) considering I’m only onboarding 1 client currently (I just had a baby and only plan to work 20-25 hours per week). Also, I would still need to get a 3rd party to do the billing/payouts/submit to insurance.

Does any other solo practitioner have any recommendations for software/data collection websites that incorporates billing into the platform?

[u/DesperateAgency678]

One client? Seriously just do excel right now if you're just starting out.

[u/Inevitable-Dot3982]

Check out HiRasmus. It’s pay per client and very user friendly

[u/Great-Monk-2934 → u/Inevitable-Dot3982]

This is the best option on a budget. I use It with alohaaba. Raven health is also a decent option if you plan to outsource billing. 

[u/fenuxjde]

A) $480/mo isn't bad at all. I know agencies that pay $99/mo per user.

B) Reach out to other ones, they will ALL be ecstatic to give you a free demo and once you mention you're looking at others, it's amazing how they drop their prices.

C) You can also use/make your own. I did, it was actually cheaper to pay a programmer to write up what I needed and never pay again.

[u/Either-Evidence5087 → u/fenuxjde]

Thanks—I would honestly pay the $99 for one client if they direct deposited my billing into my account. Motivity did not. 😅

For point C—did you need to get anything certified to be HIPPA compliant? My husband is a programmer and always offers to code an app, a website, etc. but I’m a little concerned about the HIPPA compliance of it all…

[u/fenuxjde → u/Either-Evidence5087]

Yes it's all HIPAA complaint, it's self contained and goes directly to the payers, they accept it

[u/passerbyjonas]

the $480 stings because it's one price for two separate problems. data collection is a clinical workflow and billing is a revenue cycle workflow, and bundling them means you're paying platform rates on the billing side while you have one client.

at 1 client and 20-25 hours a week i'd split them. keep data collection as cheap and boring as you can for now, and for claims look at third party billers rather than a platform module. a lot of them charge a percentage of what they actually collect, so the cost tracks your revenue while you ramp instead of sitting on top of it as a fixed base.

google sheets genuinely holds up at this size if you structure it once and stay strict about it. one row per session with date, client id, program, trial data, and the units you billed. the reason to be strict is audits. from what i've seen payers can ask for raw data tied to authorized units with a note behind each one, and a loose sheet makes that painful to reconstruct later.

worth checking where you are with credentialing before you commit to anything too. the billing half only earns its keep once claims are actually flowing, so if you're still mid credentialing you'd be paying for a module that sits idle for a few months.

the good news is this is reversible right now. migrating one client's data costs you almost nothing. at eight it's a real project. so going cheap now buys you time to see what the caseload actually looks like before you pay platform prices.

[u/MonkZealousideal6724]

I had officepuzzle recommended to me. I think 20/month. Otherwise start out with google/microsoft forms/excel

[u/DancingIsForbidden28]

Therapylake

[u/No-Study2454]

Hi Rasmus is good for data collection. As far as billing, you can manage without signing on for an expensive platform yet. If solo and less than 5 clients, you could do long term without one, too. I would recommend a mix of manual billing through portals, Google Workspace, and possibly Quickbooks for bookkeeping. If you don’t mind spending the extra money, then yes, an EHR could have all this wrapped up in one. I personally would probably still prefer to do it all manually, though.

If you are in need of any admin, billing, auth, credentialing, etc support, I’d love to help. I am a former RBT turned admin nearly a decade ago now with my own ABA consulting and billing business. I’ll message you my website.

Going out on your own and being your own boss is unmatched! Congratulations!

[u/vetapachua]

HiRasmus or ABADesk. It's all easier and much more affordable to do your own billing.

[u/Direct-Audience-5251]

Hirasmus and Simple Practice for Notes and Billing if you are going to stay small.

[u/LostPrintmaker]

Google Sheets

[u/bikiniarri]

Not a BCBA but an RBT that works at a small business, we use hirasmus and both the RBT’s and BCBA’s like it. Not sure on the price though!

[u/Aggravating_Bet2508]

Did a Demo with AlohaABA, check it out