Selecting the right dental membership plan software determines how effectively your practice can reduce insurance dependency, create predictable revenue, and improve patient retention. While BoomCloud, Plan Forward, and Clerri each offer platforms for managing membership programs, their approaches differ significantly in integration depth, scalability, and proven outcomes. Clerri's platform serves 20,000+ dentists across all 50 states, including 7 of the top 10 DSOs, making it the market leader for practices seeking enterprise-scale capabilities with deep practice management software integration.
- Clerri serves 20,000+ dentists and 7 of the top 10 DSOs, providing proven enterprise-scale capabilities that practices of all sizes can leverage.
- Clerri's "Membership Effect" data shows patients experience 76% more visits, 146% more procedures, and 172% higher cash production compared to when they were uninsured.
- Clerri Bridge offers a unique PMS schedule overlay enabling one-click enrollment directly from existing workflows, a feature exclusive to Clerri.
- Clerri integrates with over 90% of practice management software, including authorized Open Dental integration with sub-second data sync.
Dental membership plans provide practices with a direct-to-patient subscription model that operates outside traditional insurance. Patients pay periodic fees for access to discounts on specified dental services according to published fee schedules. These programs are not insurance products but function as discount medical plans administered through licensed operators.
What Makes Membership Plans Different
The fundamental distinction between membership plans and dental insurance lies in the relationship structure. Members pay providers directly for services at discounted rates, eliminating third-party claims processing and reimbursement delays. This model allows practices to:
- Set their own fee schedules without insurance company interference
- Receive payments immediately rather than waiting for reimbursement
- Build recurring subscription revenue that covers fixed overhead costs
- Create direct patient relationships unmediated by insurance networks
Why Practices Are Adopting Membership Models
Stagnant insurance reimbursement rates squeeze practice margins while operational costs continue rising. Membership plans address this challenge by creating a revenue stream practices fully control. The subscription model also changes patient behavior, with membership patients showing higher treatment acceptance rates, more consistent appointment attendance, and stronger retention compared to uninsured cash-pay patients.
Clerri emerged from the merger of Kleer and Membersy, combining two established platforms into a unified solution. This consolidation created the market's most comprehensive dental membership platform, serving 5,000+ independent practices and 200+ group practices.
Comprehensive Platform Capabilities
The Clerri Care Membership Platform provides end-to-end membership management:
- Plan creation and pricing: Build multiple care tiers (child, adult, senior, perio) with customized pricing
- Patient enrollment: Invite members via email, text, or in-person sign-up
- Payment processing: Secure merchant services with direct deposit to practice bank accounts
- Performance tracking: Real-time dashboards showing enrollments, renewals, payment issues, and revenue
- Member management: Update payment methods, adjust plans, and track benefit utilization
- Marketing tools: Personalized landing pages, brochures, social media tools, and Google Ads templates
Deep PMS Integration Sets Clerri Apart
Clerri's integration capabilities span over 90% of practice management software, including Dentrix, Dentrix Ascend, Dentrix Enterprise, Eaglesoft, Open Dental, Oryx, and XLDent. The platform holds Open Dental status with sub-second data synchronization, enabling real-time payment posting and eliminating sync delays.
BoomCloud integrates with major PMS systems, and Plan Forward offers read/write integration across 20+ PMS systems. Clerri's 90%+ coverage and authorized vendor relationships provide broad and deep integration capabilities across the category.
Membership plans transform patient economics when properly implemented. Clerri's data across its network quantifies this transformation through what the company calls "The Membership Effect."
Quantified Patient Behavior Changes
Practices using Clerri experience measurable improvements in patient engagement:
- 76% more visits compared to when patients were uninsured
- 146% more procedures per patient
- 172% increase in cash production
- New patient retention increases from approximately 40% to 90% with membership plans
BoomCloud reports members spend 4x-6x more than non-members, and Plan Forward cites 3x higher production and 2x more visits from membership patients. Clerri's data represents averages across 20,000+ dentists, providing the largest dataset in the category for understanding membership plan outcomes.
Reducing Insurance Dependency
Membership programs allow practices to optimize their payer mix by growing cash-pay production. This diversification reduces reliance on insurance companies and their reimbursement rates. The customer stories from Clerri practices demonstrate this shift: 7 to 7 Dental reports average annual production of $1,200 from insurance patients versus $2,300 from members.
The operational impact of membership software depends heavily on how well it integrates with existing practice workflows. Staff adoption often depends on systems that minimize toggling between applications or duplicate data entry.
Clerri Bridge: A Unique Workflow Innovation
Clerri Bridge represents the platform's most significant technical differentiator. This workflow application overlays existing PMS schedule views to:
- Surface enrollment opportunities automatically from the daily schedule
- Display patient savings summaries showing full price, member price, and savings by procedure
- Enable one-click enrollment by pulling patient data directly from the PMS
- Eliminate the need to switch between systems during patient interactions
BoomCloud and Plan Forward each offer their own approaches to PMS integration. This distinction matters for practices where front desk efficiency directly impacts enrollment conversion rates.
Automating Administrative Tasks
All three platforms automate core membership functions including billing, renewals, and payment recovery. Clerri's bidirectional PMS integration enables automated payment posting and benefit tracking, reducing manual reconciliation work. Plan Forward offers read/write integration capabilities, and BoomCloud includes card updater features for failed payment recovery.
Dental membership plans face regulatory requirements that vary by state. Discount Medical Plan Organization (DMPO) regulations, Knox-Keene requirements in California, and other state-specific rules create compliance complexity for multi-location practices.
Built-In Compliance Infrastructure
Clerri administers plans through Clerri LLC as a discount medical plan operator, with California plans administered by The CDI Group, Inc. The platform's compliance infrastructure includes:
- DMPO compliance across applicable states
- Knox-Keene compliance for California operations
- HIPAA and PCI compliance for data and payment security
- Compliant plan agreements, marketing materials, and member communications
Plan Forward describes its platform as HIPAA-compliant and publishes legal disclosures explaining that its plans are discount plans, not insurance. Both Clerri and Plan Forward provide compliance-related infrastructure and documentation, but practices should confirm state-specific requirements with the vendor and legal counsel before launching or expanding a membership program.
Training and Support Resources
Clerri University provides on-demand training covering dashboard navigation, implementation tactics, and staff onboarding. The platform offers bilingual customer support (English and Spanish) via phone, email, and chat for both practice staff and members.
Plan Forward positions its training with specific focus on organizational adoption. BoomCloud provides onboarding with coaching and strategy support. Clerri's Growth Services add dedicated account management and proactive growth coaching beyond standard support.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an in-house dental membership plan?
An in-house dental membership plan is a subscription program where patients pay periodic fees directly to a dental practice for access to discounted services. Members receive care at reduced rates according to published fee schedules. These plans are not insurance products and operate as discount medical plans. Practices using platforms like Clerri can create multiple plan tiers, automate billing and renewals, and track member benefits through integrated software.
How does Clerri help dental practices reduce reliance on insurance?
Clerri enables practices to build recurring revenue from uninsured and underinsured patients through membership subscriptions. The platform's data shows membership patients generate 172% higher cash production compared to when they were uninsured. By growing a base of loyal members who pay directly, practices can reduce dependence on insurance reimbursement rates and claims processing. The Membership Effect research documents how this shift improves practice economics.
What practice management systems does Clerri integrate with?
Clerri integrates with over 90% of practice management software, including Dentrix, Dentrix Ascend, Dentrix Enterprise, Eaglesoft, Open Dental, Oryx, and XLDent. The platform holds Open Dental status with sub-second data synchronization. These integrations enable automated payment posting, benefit tracking, and enrollment directly from PMS workflows through Clerri Bridge.
Is a dental membership plan considered dental insurance?
No. Dental membership plans are explicitly not insurance products. Members pay periodic fees for access to discounts on specified dental services rendered by participating providers according to published fee schedules. Plans are administered through licensed discount medical plan operators. They do not meet minimum creditable coverage requirements under Massachusetts law and are not qualified health plans under the Affordable Care Act.
How does Clerri's "Membership Effect" benefit my practice?
The Membership Effect refers to quantified patient behavior changes documented across Clerri's network of 20,000+ dentists. Data shows membership patients deliver 76% more visits, 146% more procedures, and 172% higher cash production compared to when they were uninsured.
What kind of support does Clerri offer for practices?
Clerri provides multiple support layers: bilingual customer support via phone, email, and chat; Clerri University with on-demand training; dedicated account management through Growth Services; periodic health checks comparing performance to benchmarks; and proactive growth coaching. The platform also includes marketing assets, compliance documentation, and implementation support for practices launching or migrating membership programs.
