EHR and billing operations for Orange County behavioral health providers on IRIS.
OCHCA requires contracted mental health and SUD providers to bill through IRIS, the county's records and billing system. Contract providers enter services into IRIS and the county submits the Medi-Cal claim, so IRIS is not a facility operating system. Navix is the clinical record your team works in, cutting the double entry into IRIS, and CollaborateMD, our RCM partner, processes your commercial and cash claims.
Last verified: August 19, 2026 · sources belowThe county billing system, and where your EHR fits.
OCHCA describes IRIS (Integrated Records Information System) as the billing system for all Behavioral Health Services county and contract MH and SUD programs, and the documentation platform for county-operated programs including Crisis Stabilization Unit services.
The county submits the claim
Contract providers enter services into IRIS; the county's IT and EDI unit generates the Medi-Cal 837 claim. There is no documented path for a contract provider to submit its own 837 directly to the county. SUD Drug Medi-Cal claims follow a weekly county batch cycle, so IRIS entries must meet the county's cutoffs.
Who pays
CalOptima Health, the county's Medi-Cal managed care plan, covers non-specialty mild-to-moderate mental health. OCHCA covers specialty mental health and all Drug Medi-Cal SUD through the DMC-ODS, using ASAM placement criteria.
Two systems, and a moving target.
- Double entry: clinical notes in your own record, services re-entered into IRIS for county billing
- Weekly IRIS cutoffs to hit the county's SUD DMC-ODS batch submission
- Transition uncertainty from the county's 2025 EHR-replacement RFI
IRIS is the documentation platform for county-operated programs, so contract facilities run their own operating EMR alongside it. The goal is a single clinical record your team documents once, ready to feed IRIS, rather than a second job.
One operating record. Less time in IRIS.
Navix is the EMR your team works in: clinical documentation, group notes, scheduling, and your commercial and cash census. Because clinicians document once in Navix, the data your billers enter into IRIS for county Medi-Cal is ready rather than re-created, which cuts the double entry and the weekly-cutoff scramble.
For county Medi-Cal, services are entered into IRIS and OCHCA submits the claim. CollaborateMD, our RCM partner, processes your commercial and cash claims. With the county's EHR-replacement RFI still open, keeping your own operating record also means you are not exposed to a county system transition. Confirm current OCHCA requirements against the county's own materials, which change by fiscal year.
Straight answers.
Do Orange County behavioral health providers have to use IRIS?
Yes for county billing. OCHCA states that IRIS is the billing system for all Behavioral Health Services county and contract MH and SUD programs. Contract providers enter services into IRIS, and the county's IT/EDI unit submits the resulting Medi-Cal claim to the state.
Can I bill Medi-Cal with my own EHR's 837 in Orange County?
There is no documented path for a contract provider to send its own 837 directly to the county. Services are entered into IRIS and OCHCA generates the claim. Your own EHR is used for clinical documentation, not as the Medi-Cal claim channel. Confirm specifics with OCHCA BHS System Support, since county rules change by fiscal year.
Is IRIS being replaced?
Possibly. OCHCA issued an EHR-system Request for Information in 2025 (issued May 30, 2025, responses due July 2, 2025) exploring replacement of two existing EHR systems across Behavioral Health, Public Health, and Correctional Health. As an RFI it was exploratory only; verify current status before relying on any transition timeline.
Who is the Medi-Cal payer in Orange County — CalOptima or the county?
It depends on service type. CalOptima Health, the county's Medi-Cal managed care plan, covers non-specialty mild-to-moderate mental health, while OCHCA covers specialty mental health and all Drug Medi-Cal SUD through the DMC-ODS. SUD services route through the county DMC-ODS, not CalOptima.
Does my EMR still matter if the county runs IRIS?
Yes. IRIS is the documentation platform for county-operated programs, so contract facilities still need their own operating EMR for clinical charting, groups, scheduling, and their commercial and cash census. Navix is that operating record, reducing the double entry into IRIS, and CollaborateMD, our RCM partner, processes your commercial and cash claims.
Related.
See Navix alongside IRIS.
We will walk the path from clinical documentation to your IRIS entries and your commercial claims, on a real chart.
SOC 2 · HIPAA · 42 CFR Part 2 · Drummond-certified ONC Health IT