Interview with Dr. Ed Simon: Owner of Ed Simon Chiropractic & Office Ally User

Though Office Ally is best known for its free clearinghouse, many chiropractors also leverage Office Ally's low-cost EHR module, known as EHR 24/7. Though EHR 24/7 is widely used by a wide variety healthcare providers and isn't developed specifically for chiropractors, at $29.95/month, it offers an affordable cloud-based system that can help get the job done for chiropractic practices. This monthly cost is a fraction of what chiropractic EHR's typically charge.

To better understand how Office Ally can be used to help support chiropractic practices, we spoke with Dr. Ed Simon, owner of Ed Simon Chiropractic in North Hollywood, to understand how he leverages Office Ally's clearinghouse and EHR 24/7 module in his practice.

Hi Dr. Simon, nice to meet you. Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your chiropractic practice?

I'm the owner of Ed Simon Chiropractic in North Hollywood, have been a practicing chiropractor for 37 years. I have two full-time staff members. We treat a variety of patient pay types including cash, Medicare, work and car injuries, plus a variety of in and out of network insurances.

Why did you choose to use Office Ally?

I tried Office Ally due to essentially the no cost initial investment. There is nothing to buy, the billing module is free and the EHR is only $30 per month, which includes free training, support and clearinghouse fees.

Have you used other Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems in the past? If so, how does Office Ally compare?

I have not used other EHRs but for many years we used Lytec Software for paper claims billing. It certainly served its purpose at the time but it in no way offered the features we have come to depend on with Office Ally.

What are some improvements that can be made to Office Ally?

I am not a big fan of the progress note interface, which is without a doubt the most important screen I use.

To access all aspects of the progress note, scrolling is necessary. This could be avoided with a different design. Also, the software allows for customized user phrases to be inserted in the notes field. However the length of the allowable phrases, in my opinion, is too short and the list of phrases must be alphabetical based on the first letter of the phrase, which is less than ideal.

How often do you need to use their customer support? Have you found their support to be helpful/responsive when you've needed it?

Support has always been excellent, responsive and free. I could not be happier with my support experiences.

Do you also use Office Ally for submitting claims? If so, what do you like and dislike about that process?

We have never had a claim submitting issue.

Data from the clinical note is combined with demographic and insurance data seamlessly. And submitting the claims is as simple as checking the checkbox associated with that visit and then clicking "submit claims."

If there are claims with data errors they are sent to a "repairable claims" folder where we correct and resubmit them.

Prior to using Office Ally, how were you submitting claims? Do you prefer Office Ally over your previous method?

Prior to Office Ally we printed paper claims and mailed them.

We will be going back to that method shortly after we repair our mimeograph machine and go back to eight track tapes. In other words, we plan on sticking with Office Ally.

Can you describe any issues you've run into when submitting claims through Office Ally? Are there any improvements you'd like to see?

I cannot suggest any improvements to the claim submitted process of Office Ally. I have quite a few suggestions for the EHR which we discussed, but for $29.95/month it is great for a product that has served me overall very well.

Do you have any advice for our readers who are selecting an EHR or clearinghouse to help streamline their business?

I would highly recommend Office Ally as at least a starting point to learn how to use an EHR. As a chiropractor I only need a small fraction of the overall functionality and strive to keep my data protocols as simple as possible.

I am not aware of anything I have given up by using this product and like with many cloud-based applications, I love the fact that I can work at home, in a coffee shop or use my cellphone to check the time of my first morning appointment.

About Office Ally
Office Ally offers a suite of medical software products that are currently used by more than 330,000 medical providers. Though Office Ally is best known for its free clearinghouse, Office Ally also offers other products (including a comprehensive low-cost EHR, a free practice management system, and a free patient portal) that can be used for end-to-end management of your chiropractic practice.

To learn more about Office Ally, you can read our in-depth review here.

You can also visit Office Ally's website here.