Klara

What Is Klara?

Klara, which is now incorporated into ModMed (Modernizing Medicine), is a HIPAA-compatible message and communication application, which enables patient engagement activities through messaging, voice calls, and web chatting. It allows all patient interactions to be organized into one thread for proper communication as well as patient care delivery. 

Klara is not an electronic health record (EHR), but has been integrated with a number of the most popular EHRs. Not only that, but it can also connect with existing EHRs used by clinics. 

All conversations are encrypted to safeguard electronic medical data (ePHI) and sync with the clinic's EHR. When paired with ModMed’s EMA EHR system, the content of the messages can be added to the patient's record for the physician’s review. 

What Is Klara Best For?

The key feature of Klara is that it minimizes the employee burden of taking calls, as patients can receive appointment reminders, simple inquiries, and follow-up messages via text exchanges. Clinics that benefit greatly from Klara are those that usually get a higher volume of calls, such as dermatology and urgent care clinics, and multi-provider practices, where the staff has to spend a lot of time on the phone.

How Much Does Klara Cost?

The pricing for Klara starts at approximately $125/user/month, based on industry benchmark estimates. Estimated costs scale by tier: 

• Essential Messaging: $125–$200/user/month, for small teams needing basic HIPAA-secure texting and shared inboxes 
• Practice Communication Suite: $200–$300/user/month, adding broadcast messaging, automated reminders, deeper EHR integration 
• Patient Engagement Plus: $300–$450/user/month, including self-scheduling, advanced intake workflows, and analytics 
• Enterprise Network: $4,500–$9,000/month for 15+ provider groups, with custom integrations and dedicated support 

Beyond the monthly subscription, practices evaluating Klara should also plan for setup and integration costs: 

• Onboarding and account setup: $500–$2,500 one-time, covering account provisioning and template configuration 
• EHR integration: $1,000–$10,000+ one-time, higher if connecting to a non-ModMed EHR rather than a native ModMed system 
• Staff training: $500–$3,000 one-time, for front-desk and clinical teams adopting the new messaging workflow 
• Ongoing management: $200–$1,500/month in staff time for maintaining templates and reviewing message activity 

The total setup fees for the first year can vary from $2,500 to $10,000 depending on the complexity and size of the practice. In case the practice has many locations, the fees range from $10,000 to $50,000 or more. 

Get in touch with us to get a custom Klara price quote for your practice.

Disclaimer: Pricing references are based on publicly available third-party information and industry benchmarks. Actual costs may vary. 

Klara Integrations

The software integrates with the following third-party applications: 

• NextGen Healthcare
• EpicCare EMR
• Practice Fusion EHR
•  DrChrono
• athenahealth EMR
• ModMed EHR 
• Care Director
• Cerner Ambulatory 

Additionally, it integrates with other solutions such as DocHub to provide users with more value from each solution. Klara also features interoperability and workflow management for telemedicine. 

How Does Klara Work?

Here is a step-by-step guide for practitioners who want to know what to do next after integrating the Klara software with their EHR: 

• Log in to your account using your credentials and fill in the details required to create your practice account, such as practice name, address, phone number, and website
• Add your team members, define their roles, and determine their permissions
• Specify the practice's timings and appointment types
• Create your custom templates for messages and e-forms for your practice
• Start communicating with your patients through Klara’s messaging, telemedicine, and e-forms modules 

Still need help visualizing the implementation? Schedule a free Klara demo to walk through it with our team.

Who Is Klara For?

Klara is used across various specialties, including:

• Dermatology
• Plastic surgery
• OBGYN
• Family and internal medicine
• Otolaryngology
• Pediatrics
• Primary care

Klara Use Cases 

Based on our analysis of user reviews and Klara’s features, we have identified scenarios where this software is a good fit for outpatient medical practices and specialty clinics: 

Clinics Seeking HIPAA-Compliant Patient Messaging

Klara is ideal for facilities that focus on safe, asynchronous communication with their patients. It helps decrease the volume of phone calls and organizes communication in one platform so that the team is able to perform follow-ups, coordinate appointments, and answer clinical questions while being compliant with HIPAA. 

Multi-Provider Practices Coordinating Internal Communication

Hospitals which have several practitioners and administrative personnel can also benefit from Klara’s internal communication capabilities. Communication in real-time across specialists allows staff to manage their patients’ inquiries, lab results, and scheduling issues quickly and without mistakes. 

Front Desk Teams Managing High Patient Volume

Busy reception teams utilize Klara in order to optimize the process of the intake, reminders, and coordination of insurance. Automating and centralizing the routine phone tasks allows the receptionists to spend more time on the high-value activities like dealing with patients, verifying their insurance, and solving problems. This becomes especially important in those clinics that have a lot of clients such as urgent cares or dermatological offices. 

Specialty Practices Handling Referral Workflows

There are some practices that rely on frequent referrals (such as orthopedics, cardiology, or gastroenterology) because their specialty requires that patients come through another provider first. These practices can use Klara to securely exchange medical records, surgical reports, and clinical summaries with external providers. Instead of faxing, documents are uploaded directly into the secure chat dashboard. The internal care team can leave private notes for each other ('Pre-op clearance looks good, proceed with scheduling') right next to the incoming medical files, ensuring care transitions happen quickly. 

Minimizing No-Shows For Complex Medical Preps 

Procedures like colonoscopies or specific surgeries require complex fasting or medication adjustments. If a patient forgets the instructions, the appointment must be cancelled last minute, wasting valuable operating time. The software's automated workflows trigger text sequences at critical milestones (e.g., 7 days, 3 days, and 1 hour prior). Rather than just a generic reminder, Klara pushes out explicit, customized clinical instructions (e.g., 'Do not eat after midnight'). The patient can text back to clarify instructions instantly, ensuring they show up fully prepared and help reduce costly scheduling no-shows. 

Klara User Sentiment 

Klara Features

Telemedicine

Many platforms require patients to download a separate app (like Zoom or a portal app) or create a password to join a video visit. Klara launches video visits completely app-free. The provider triggers a secure video link directly inside the existing SMS text thread. The patient simply taps the link in their text messages, authorizes their phone camera, and they are instantly in the virtual visit.

Appointment Reminders

Instead of just sending a one-way notification that says, ‘You have an appointment tomorrow,’ Klara turns reminders into a two-way conversation. When a patient replies to a text reminder to cancel or ask a question, Klara’s system automatically routes that response straight to the office staff's desktop dashboard. It bridges the gap between automated notifications and live patient support.

Workflow Automation

The workflow automation feature of Klara is intended for enabling medical providers manage their administrative duties in a timely manner. The functionality enables healthcare professionals to minimize time spent on various administrative tasks, such as appointment scheduling or getting insurance information from patients.

Secure Messaging

In the traditional secure messaging system, patients have to access a rather inconvenient ‘Patient Portal’ with a username and password which they often forget. Klara uses SMS-fallback authentication. A patient receives a regular SMS message with a hyperlink. Tapping the hyperlink prompts them to enter their date of birth to instantly unlock the secure, HIPAA-compliant chat space. It feels exactly like normal texting to the patient but keeps data fully encrypted.

Call-To-Text And Voicemail Transcription

Klara (now part of ModMed EHR’s patient engagement suite) offers call-to-text conversion, redirecting incoming calls into a text conversation instead of the caller waiting on hold. Voicemail transcription is included as well, converting patient voicemails into a written summary staff can read and respond to without listening to the full recording. 

Webchat 

The software offers a webchat widget that practices can add directly to their website. Visitors typing a question there start a message thread with the practice, which lands in the same inbox as text and other patient messages.

Digital Intake And E-Forms 

Digital intake forms are sent to patients as a link before their appointment, one of Klara's features for cutting down front-desk paperwork. Patients fill in their information and sign electronically from their phone or computer, removing the need for staff to hand out or collect paper forms at check-in. 

Is Klara Right For You?

Klara is the right software platform for your medical setup if your front desk is drowning in phone calls or you run a visual specialty (Dermatology, Plastic Surgery, Orthopaedics, or Ophthalmology). It might also be the perfect fit for practices using modern EHRs like ModMed or athenahealth that want to eliminate phone tags, automate intake paperwork, and fill last-minute appointment cancellations.

But if you need a standalone EHR/billing software, treat emergency/inpatient cases, or your patients do not use smartphones, it may not be the best match. 

The software is suitable for organizations of all sizes and can also be customized to fit your practice's needs. But it all boils down to the requirements, size, and budget of your business. Always keep these factors in mind before choosing any software.

Still not sure if Klara software is a suitable choice? Contact us at (315) 215-3447 to get familiar with the functionalities of the software.