HIPAA Texting for CentralReach Users
CentralReach handles your clinical record. Here is how to add the two-way parent texting it does not offer — over SMS, with group threads and a signed BAA.
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The short answer
CentralReach is the clinical backbone for ABA practices, but its parent portal requires families to log in to read messages. That works for session notes and billing. It does not work for the dozens of quick messages a practice sends parents every day. BloomText works alongside CentralReach to give your practice a dedicated texting number. Parents reply over SMS. Group threads keep the BCBA, supervisor, and parent in one conversation. Every message is retained on your organization's account.
Capability comparison
BloomText vs CentralReach
| Capability | BloomText | CentralReach |
|---|---|---|
| Two-way SMSPatients reply by secure chat via SMS | Included | Not included |
| Group threadsStaff and patients in one conversation | Included | Not included |
| Broadcast messagingReach many patients at once | Included | Not included |
| No app or login requiredWorks from any phone, no download needed | Included | Not included |
| Portal or app messagingPatients log in to a portal to message | Not included | Included |
| One-way SMS remindersAutomated appointment notifications | Not included | Included |
| Self-serve pricingPublished rates, no sales call needed | Included | Not included |
| No long-term contractMonth-to-month, cancel anytime | Included | Not included |
The gap CentralReach users describe
CentralReach handles scheduling, billing, data collection, and clinical documentation. For those jobs, the portal works. The gap is the fast, informal communication that happens between those structured workflows — the text to a parent that a session is running late, the photo of a reinforcement board, the quick confirmation of a schedule swap.
When that communication has no compliant channel, it moves to personal phones. BCBAs text parents from their personal numbers. The practice has no record of the exchange, no way to transfer the thread when staff change, and no audit trail.
What CentralReach users need alongside their EHR
A dedicated work number that parents recognize and text. Two-way SMS so parents reply from their phone without logging into anything. Group conversations where the BCBA, supervisor, and parent share one thread. And organizational ownership — conversations belong to the practice, not to whoever sent the text. These are the requirements the portal does not address. See what makes texting HIPAA compliant for the full compliance checklist.
How BloomText fills the gap
BloomText gives CentralReach practices a dedicated number for parent texting. Parents receive a secure link over SMS, tap it, and reply — no app download, no portal login. Group conversations include the BCBA, supervisor, and parent so everyone sees the same thread.
CentralReach stays the system of record. BloomText handles the communication layer. Conversations are searchable, exportable, and retained on the organization's account. When a BCBA transitions off a case, the parent thread stays with the practice.
Every plan includes a signed BAA, including the free plan. Over 21,000 healthcare professionals across 3,000 organizations use BloomText. See pricing for current plans.
Frequently Asked Questions
- No. CentralReach remains your clinical record, scheduling, and billing platform. BloomText adds the two-way parent texting that CentralReach's portal does not offer.
- No. Parents receive secure links over normal SMS and reply from any phone. There is no app to install and no account to create.
- Yes. BloomText group conversations include multiple staff members and a parent in one thread. Everyone sees the same exchange.
- Conversations are owned by the practice. Admins revoke the departing staff member's access, and the full thread history stays on the organization's account.
Does BloomText replace CentralReach?
Do parents need to download an app?
Can I set up group threads with parents?
What happens to conversations when a BCBA leaves?
Sources
Last verified August 27, 2026.
