NextGen Knowledge Center

Letter Export Header

The ability to export letters in batch mode to ASCII file format means that you can export these letters to a clearinghouse so the clearinghouse can generate and send the letters for your practice. Before you can export letters, the Export Header needs to be set up. However, if you want to change the Export Header, you need to understand the function of the Export Header and how it is set up.

The Export Header is necessary for the clearinghouse to print the letters. The information that you choose to include in the setup of the export header specifies to the clearinghouse what information is being used to address the envelopes that they mail. The information that is usually included in the Export Header includes patient information, practice information, and any information that relates to the type of letter that is being exported. When you export letters in an ASCII format file, the Export Header information that you have selected to print on the letters is displayed on the H1 line of each letter as indicator fields. The following example shows what the exported letters in ASCII format look like and, specifically, where the H1 (Export Header) information is located.

The following example shows an exported ASCII format file opened in Microsoft® Notepad.
  • The first three lines of the exported ASCII format file indicates the date and time it was created, followed by the number of pages in the file and the type of letters that were exported.
  • The information in the brackets [ ] does not print on the letters. They are used as indicators for what will print on the letters. In the example, [Statement 1] indicates that this is the first letter in the ASCII file.
  • The Export Header ( H1) indicator is the first line of each letter in the export file. The field indicators for the Export Header that were set up before the file was exported display in the brackets [ ]. This information does not print on the letters, but is used to indicate which type of information follows the field indicators and prints on the letters. In the example, [Pat_FullName] indicates that the patient’s full name will be the first information to print on the letter, followed by the first line of the patient’s address, as indicated by the field indicator [Pat_Add1].