5.42 Release Features

The 5.42 Release is here! Take a moment to explore what’s new and see how these improvements enhance your experience.

What’s New!

• Now you can Customize Dentition by age; ideal for Orthodontics and Oral Surgery practices.
• Practices in Hawaii and Minnesota can now easily apply Sales Tax to treatments with the newly added Sales Tax controls for each Location.
• Practice owners can now set the Maximum Discount for treatments at the Account or Location level.
• Two options are now available to manage the difference amount when a Payment Plan Installment is edited or skipped.
• Non-Patients can now be added as Dependents or Responsible Parties and set as Authorized Contacts for campaigns.

What’s Been Enhanced!

• Patient Cancellation and No-Show counts are now retained even when the appointments are rescheduled.
• You can now update the Billing Order even after a treatment code has been completed.
• Directly add Medical Codes to Coverages from the Available Codes list to set precise coverage percentages.
• The last-used Terminal for card payments is now automatically filled in by the system.
• Branding and Quick Links now match the location where the Form or Letter was added.
• Send Forms Reminder Campaigns via text to boost patient engagement.

5.42 has even more enhancements; dive deeper to discover the full update!

Front Office

 1.  Easily Identify Patient Reschedules and Cancellations

a. Cancellation and No-Show counts are now retained even after appointments are rescheduled, making it easier to review a patient’s appointment history.

• You can find this information in the Cancellation Modal and the Patient’s Appointments page.

b. We have introduced a Previous Reschedules label in the cancellation modal. Now you can quickly spot how often a patient has rescheduled.

2. Hover Over an Appointment Tile to View Referral Sources

a. Hover over an Appointment tile to view the primary and additional Referral Sources.

Clinical

1. Customize Dentition by Age

a. Practices can now Customize Dentition by patient age, allowing you to manage dentition accurately and reduce repetitive manual adjustments.

• Custom dentitions take priority, and if none are set, the system uses the default dentition.
• Users can access this feature only if the View, Add/Edit, and Delete Dentition permissions are enabled for the user’s profile in Practice Settings.

2. Update Billing Order after Code Completion

a. You can now update the Billing Order after a treatment code has been Completed. This is especially helpful when patients return with additional or alternative insurance details after treatment. 

3. Set Up Sales Tax for Practice Locations

a. Practices in Hawaii and Minnesota can now easily manage sales tax. A new location-level Sales Tax section lets you control how sales tax is applied for procedures.

• When enabled in Practice Settings, you can manually Generate Sales Tax Codes for treatments and attach them to claims to save time and eliminate manual work.

4. Set Up Maximum Discount for Treatments

a. Practice owners can now control the Maximum Discount that can be applied to treatments with the newly introduced ‘Discount Settings’ in Practice Settings → Fee Tables.

• Users can either limit the maximum discount that can be applied to a code or prevent them from reducing the current fee of a code. This can be configured at the account or location level.
• You can access the Discount configuration only if the Add/Edit Discount limits permission is enabled for the user’s profile in Practice Settings.

5. Auto-Finalize Draft Care Notes on Clinical Lockout

a. You can now automatically finalize draft Care Notes during Clinical Lockout. This ensures all notes that do not require provider acceptance are finalized, reducing manual effort and keeping your clinical documentation complete.

• Users can enable this setting in Practice Settings → Care Notes.
• This is only applicable to accounts with Clinical Lockout enabled.

6. Lock Treatment Fees to Restrict Fee Change

• All practices now have the option to Lock the Treatment Fees in the Treatment Planner or CodeStack to prevent a treatment code's fee from being automatically updated during recalculation, keeping the final fee consistent.

7. Filter Treatment Plans by Location

a. Users can now filter treatment plans by Location(s) on the Treatment Plan Board to easily view and manage location-specific treatments. 

• When you Print or Download as CSV, it will only include data for the selected Location.

8. Implant Tracker: New Location Field & Implant Type Visibility

a. We have introduced a new ‘Location’ field to the Treatment Details section in the Implant Tracker for effective tracking across locations. 

b. ‘Implant Type’ can now be viewed directly in the Implant Tracker Overview.

9. Improved Provider Filtering for Prescriptions

• The Provider drop-down in the Prescriptions slide-out now only displays providers associated with your checked-in location, ideal for multi-location DSOs. The list also dynamically refreshes when you switch locations, saving you time and ensuring accuracy.

10. Location Access Restricted to Allowed Location(s)

• When adding Treatments in the Chart/Treatment Planner or updating Chart Filters in Practice Settings, users can only select the locations they have access to.

11. View Clinical Cases of Other Locations

• Users can now view Clinical Cases tagged to locations they do not have access to, improving cross-location visibility and coordination.

12. Easily Manage Treatments in Treatment Plans

• We have made it easier to manage treatment plans! With the new right-click option ‘Delink from Tx Plan’, you can now effortlessly remove treatments and move them to the Ungrouped section under the original date. This makes it easier to add, remove, or reorganize codes in the Treatment Planner.

13. Enhanced Fee Calculation for Fee-for-Service Practices

• Fee-for-Service (FFS) Practices can now use UCR Fees instead of the Maximum Allowable fee for Fee Estimation. Just enable the setting in the Insurance Plan Details.

14. Restrictions on Completed Codes During ‘Close Out’

• Codes with a Completed status dated on or before the Close Out Date can no longer be changed.

15. New Active Condition: Cracked Surface

• Introducing the ‘Cracked Surface’ condition with a new Draw Type.

16. View Appointment Details from Chart

• You can now view the Appointment Status and Details right from the Chart and directly open the appointment slide-out by clicking ‘View Details’. 

17. Select ‘All’ Tooth Surfaces with One Click

• Introducing the ‘All’ button in the Tooth Selector that lets you select all tooth surfaces at once.

Referrals

1. Permissions for Referrals

a. A new Referrals section in Practice Settings consolidates all referral-related Permissions, including Refer Out, Referral Hub, Referral Providers, and Referral Tracker.

•  Create Referral now has its own dedicated permission.
• Grouped referral-related settings under a new 'Referrals' sub-section in Practice Settings.

Note: Existing workflows remain functional, with permissions migrated and enabled by default; admins can further customize as needed.

RCM

1. Card Payments: Auto-Select Last Used Terminal

• The system now auto-fills your last used Terminal for Credit or Debit card payments.

2. Apply the Difference Amount to Next or All Remaining Installment(s)

• Editing and Skipping Payment Plan installments are now more flexible: instead of automatically redistributing the outstanding balance evenly, you can choose to apply the adjusted amount to the Next Upcoming Installment or distribute it equally across All Remaining Installments.

3. Enhancements to Transaction Charges

a. The Unapplied Transaction Charges chip now turns blue when the amount is $0.00 in Receipt Details, and stays red for amounts above $0.00.

b. We have enhanced Refund descriptions to include transaction charges for more clarity.

c. Full reversal of receipts initiated from the All Payments Page or Ledger now includes both the Deposit Amount and Transaction Charges. Previously, only the deposit amount was reversed.

4. Improvements to Insurance Payments

a. Uploaded documents, whether single or multiple, are now auto-selected for linking to the receipt. Additionally, closing the Documents slide-out with auto-selected uploads now triggers a Warning to link them to Insurance Receipts. Both enhancements ensure users successfully link the uploaded document to the receipt. 

b. The 20 MB file size restriction for uploads has been removed for uploads.

c. The Post Zero Dollar Transactions checkbox is greyed out until a $0.00 insurance payment is entered, applicable at both the line and claim levels.

d. An info icon has been added for Allowed Amount to show that these values are for auto-calculation only and do not alter the code posted to the ledger at checkout.

e. The validation message for adding Insurance Payments at the line or claim level when the Close Claim box is unchecked has been removed, so you can now submit these payments without entering an Insurance Payment value while keeping the claim open.

5. Insurance Manager Enhancements

a. You can now select Medical Codes directly from the Available Codes List. Previously, these codes were given full coverage by default. With the addition of Medical Codes to this list, practices can now set specific coverage percentages for each code as needed.

b. Additional Coverage Information and Coverage Categories that were previously in separate tabs can now be viewed together on a single screen, making it easier for users to access and manage coverage details, with Additional Coverage Information highlighted in its own section.

c. Easily customize Insurance Eligibility Check Period by Plan Type.

• Previously, the Insurance Eligibility Check Period was set at the Account level for all insurance plans. Now, you can choose a period for Each Plan Type Individually (e.g., Calendar Month for PPO, Calendar Year for HMO) or apply the same period to All Plan Types.

Note: This will be reflected in the Scheduler's Eligibility View, where appointment blocks appear red when an eligibility check is needed and green once completed.

• You will now find this setting in Insurance Eligibility Settings under the Insurance Manager, instead of Scheduler Settings → Eligibility Settings.

Reporting & Analytics

1. Explore the Treatment Tracker Report

• Use the Treatment Tracker Report to view all treatments for patients who have checked out within a selected date range. It helps you follow up on unscheduled treatments and plan upcoming treatments more effectively.

2. Enhanced Info Tooltips for Metrics

• The info (i) icon in Scorecard/Analytics Dashboard/Trend Analysis Metrics now provides detailed metric definitions.

3. Updated Logic for Metrics

• For metrics such as Patient Visit, Avg Daily Gross Prod (DOS), Avg Daily Net Prod (DOS) to be based on patient visit configuration can now  be set in Insights →  Settings.
• Cancellation Rate and No Show has been redefined to be based on number of appointments cancelled and no show appointments rather than duration of appointments. 
• Click here to learn all about the metric logic updates.

4.  Saved Patient Lists Moved from Patient List to Opportunity Miner

• All your Saved Patient Lists are now in Opportunity Miner. Switch to Opportunity Miner to generate smarter, more actionable lists. Lists that have been moved will include a Migrated tag for easy identification.

5. New Patient Logic Now Visible in Insights Settings

a. You can now view the New Patient Code logic directly from the Insights → Settings screen, similar to how the Aging and Metric Setup sections are displayed.

b. This setting determines which procedure codes qualify a patient as ‘New’ within your practice and impacts several reports, metrics, and lists across CareStack.

c. Depending on your practice configuration, the setup will display one of the following:

• Specific Code — e.g., New Patient Code: D0120
• Specific Set of Codes — e.g., New Patient Code: D0120, D0140, D0150
• Any Code — e.g., New Patient Code: Any Code

d. Once a patient completes their New Patient Code for the first time, they automatically lose their ‘N’ flag.

Note: This configuration is defined during implementation and cannot be edited from within the application. If you wish to modify your New Patient setup, please contact [e-mail].

Patient Services

1. Treatment Plan Shows Planned & Completed Treatments in Patient Portal

a. Experience the updated Treatment Plan view in the Treatment Planner, showing both Planned and Completed Treatments when sharing with patients via the Patient Portal. Use the ‘Show Completed Items’ option to toggle visibility.

• Completed codes are indicated by green checkmarks.
• Discounts applied through your membership plans are indicated by red asterisks.

2. Forms & Letters Now Reflect the Added Location

a. When adding Forms that require a provider’s signature, you will now need to select a provider first. This update makes it easier to ensure that forms with a pending provider signature are filtered and identified in the Pending Signature Forms list.

• The Provider dropdown for Forms and Letters displays only providers who have access to the form’s assigned location across PMS, Office Mode, Kiosk, and the Patient Portal.

Note: This feature is available upon request. Contact [e-mail] to have it enabled.

3. Capture Marketing Consent in Online Appointment Booking and Kiosk

• In line with data privacy regulations, CareStack's Online Appointment Portal and Kiosk now include a checkbox to capture marketing consent during bookings. This will be reflected across all registration flows to ensure explicit patient consent is captured, allowing practices to send marketing emails based on patient preferences.

4. Acknowledgement Text Now Replaces Consent Checkbox for Online Bookings

• We have replaced the consent checkbox with an acknowledgement statement: “I understand my details will be used to manage my appointment.”

5. Introduced Provider Dropdown for Forms/Letters Requiring Provider Signature

• You can now select a Provider when adding Forms or Letters, making it easier to filter items in the Pending Signature lists. The Provider dropdown for Forms/Letters now shows only providers who have access to the assigned location, across PMS, Office Mode, Kiosk, and Patient Portal.

Note: This feature is available upon request. Contact [e-mail] to have it enabled.

 

Patient Engagement

1. Text Medium Now Available for Forms Reminder Campaigns  

• Forms Reminder Campaigns now support SMS in addition to email, improving visibility and patient engagement while reducing the chances of missed reminders.  Click ‘Add Text’ to get started.

Note: If you are unable to see this feature, please contact [e-mail]

2. Add and Assign Non-Patients

• Non-Patients (e.g., guardians or additional parents) can now be added directly to the system. Before this, only Responsible Parties and Insurance Subscribers could be added as non-patients.

3. Assign Patients or Non-Patients as Authorized Contact

• You can now add an Authorized Contact to any patient to receive copies of campaign messages, which can be patients or non-patients within the family. For dependents without contact information, messages go to the Responsible Party, with duplicates sent to the Authorized Contact.

Note: If you are unable to see this feature, please contact [e-mail].

4. Marketing Emails Are Now Unchecked by Default

• The Marketing Emails subscription checkbox will now remain unchecked by default across all related touchpoints when entering a patient’s email. Users must manually select it only after receiving the patient's explicit consent, to ensure compliance with data privacy standards.
  
  

5. View Referral Sources from the Patient Top Card

• Easily view a patient’s Referral Sources directly from the Patient Top Card. Simply click the icon to view referral details and make quick calls to referring providers. You can also view the same information in the Patient Snapshot and Clinical Chart.

Security

1. IP Restrictions Now Support IPv6 Addresses

• IP restrictions now support IPv6 in addition to existing IPv4 addresses, allowing you to assign IPv6 Addresses as allowed addresses to enhance and future-proof network security. See the 'View Supported Formats' for more information.

General

1. Download the Full User List

• The Users Grid in Practice Settings now includes a Download option, allowing users to export the full user list with details to a CSV format.

Explore the new and updated features and let us know your thoughts. We can’t wait to hear what you think!

Stay ahead with the exciting 5.42 updates, coming to practices by late November!