What this article helps with: Fixing the problems firms actually hit with Lia, grouped by what you are seeing, plus answers to the questions that come up in the first month.
Who this is for: Everyone using Lia, and firm admins who get asked why something is missing.
When not to use this article: This is for things that are not working. If you are setting Lia up for the first time, start with the getting started and Agent Settings articles instead.
One thing to know first, because it explains half the list below. Every Lia capability is enabled per firm by Hona, not from a settings page. Lia itself, Care Coordination, Provider Liaison, provider recommendations, and Chat with Lia are each switched on by Hona. Admins configure them once they are on, but nobody at your firm can switch one on from nothing.
I cannot see Lia at all
There is no Lia section in your left-hand navigation. Three causes, in the order worth checking.
Lia is not enabled for your firm. Contact Hona Support or your account team.
Your role is Follower. Followers cannot use Lia at all. This is the most common cause after the firm-level one. An Admin changes the role to Admin, User, or Team User.
You are signed in to the wrong firm. Switch companies and look again.
If you see some Lia pages and not others, that is about which skills your firm has, covered further down.
I can see it but cannot change settings
Agent Settings opens, but changes will not save.
Only Admins change firm-wide Agent Settings. Users and Team Users can open the page and read it, so a case manager can see the rules Lia is working from without rewriting them for everyone. Ask an Admin to make the change.
Marking a provider Preferred is also Admin-only, even though adding and editing providers is not.
I cannot enroll someone
The Enroll button does not work for you, or you cannot unenroll a client.
Enrolling and unenrolling needs a per-user permission. Admins have it inherently. Users and Team Users need it granted.
An Admin grants it at Company Settings → Team → Team Members → [person] → User Permissions. In the modal titled "User Permissions", tick the checkbox labeled Medical Management: Enroll Cases. That label is an older string that has not been renamed yet, so look for it exactly as written.
An Admin can also grant it at Agent Settings → User Management, the screen for which people at your firm can use Lia. Switch Manual on for that person there, using Manage individually or Turn on for everyone. Both places set the same permission, so granting it in either one is enough.
Also check that the client is on a case. Enrollment attaches Lia to a contact plus a case.
Lia is not texting a client
The client is enrolled and shows as active, but nothing is going out.
The client has no phone number on file. This is the usual cause. Add a phone number to the contact.
No client is being texted at all. If it is firm-wide, your firm has no main phone number configured for outbound texts. Contact Hona Support.
The client opted out. If they texted STOP or an equivalent, Lia stopped permanently and will not resume.
Something is paused. Check the In Treatment toggle on the client and the firm-wide toggles in Agent Settings. Pausing blocks outbound at the execution layer, so a paused agent genuinely cannot send.
It is outside contact hours. Lia does not contact clients between 7pm and 9am in the client's own timezone.
Clients are not enrolling automatically
New cases move into a phase and nobody gets enrolled. Go to Agent Settings → Skill Automations and check two things.
The mode. On Manual Only, staff enroll and unenroll each client by hand and nothing happens on its own. Automatic enrolls and unenrolls clients as their case moves through phases.
The phases. Below the mode is a grid per project type titled Which phases enroll cases, and which skills run. If no phases have Lia Respond switched on, automatic enrollment has nothing to act on.
The Lia dashboard also has an Eligible for Enrollment list, "Cases in a trigger phase that still need enrollment". If cases are sitting there, that is where to catch them.
Lia escalates too much
Your escalation count is high and your team feels like it is doing the work anyway. This is almost always thin setup rather than a fault. Lia escalates instead of guessing, so the less it knows about your firm, the more often it stops and asks.
Fill in Firm context. In Agent Settings, Firm context opens a page covering what your clients call the agent, how Lia should answer, background about your firm, the default case owner, and your FAQ count.
Add FAQs to your phases. These are the answers Lia gives instead of escalating. You write them under Company Settings → Project Types. Lia reads them across the whole case type, not only the phase the client is in now.
Review your escalation rules. Each rule reads "Escalate when the client [condition]". If one fires constantly on something your team does not need to see, edit it. A Restore client defaults link is there if you want to start over.
Lia will not email a provider
A provider is on the case but no email has gone out.
Two conditions must both be true before Lia will email a provider: the provider is linked to the case, and the provider has an email address on file. The system enforces this.
The provider has no email address. The escalation names the provider and includes a field for the address. Enter it and save, and the request resumes. Nobody has to re-text the client. You can also add it on the provider record.
The provider is not in the directory at all. Lia saves what the client said as a draft provider for someone to review. Drafts cannot be used until a person approves one and adds an email.
The provider is in the directory but not linked. Lia links it and proceeds, as long as it has an email.
Provider emails are blocked
The Treatment tab shows the Liaison as blocked with an authorization state, and nothing is going out for that client.
A signed HIPAA authorization is required before Lia can request bills or records, and that requirement cannot be removed. Upload the signed authorization from the escalation, which carries an Upload signed authorization action. Once it is on the client, the request resumes and the authorization is attached automatically.
If your firm has added its own required documents under Authorization documents, those need to be in place too.
I cannot find Provider Emails or the Provider directory
These two pages appear based on which skills your firm has.
Missing page | Cause | Fix |
Provider directory | Your firm has Lia but neither Care Coordination nor Provider Liaison | The directory appears when either one is enabled. Contact your account team |
Provider Emails | Provider Liaison is not enabled for your firm | Contact Hona Support or your account team |
If Provider Liaison is enabled but nothing is happening, check the master toggle on the Provider Liaison page. When it reads Off for the whole firm, collection is paused and your settings are kept.
The AI bar or Chat with Lia is missing
Inside a client conversation there should be an AI bar above the message composer, which opens the Chat with Lia drawer.
No AI bar at all. Either your firm does not have Lia, or your role is Follower, or the person you are messaging is a Lead rather than a client. Check the role, and confirm the conversation is with a client on a case.
The AI bar is there but there is no Chat with Lia. Chat with Lia is enabled separately from the rest of Lia. Contact Hona Support or your account team.
FAQs
Does Lia replace our case managers?
Does Lia replace our case managers?
No, and it is not built that way. Lia takes the repetitive communication your team never has enough hours for, and routes anything needing judgment back to a person.
Do clients know they are texting an AI?
Do clients know they are texting an AI?
That is set by your introduction message, and the one Hona ships by default says so: it introduces the agent by name and states that it is an AI assistant. That introduction lives in Agent Settings and is yours to edit, so if your firm rewrites it, check that it still tells clients what you want them to know. We recommend keeping the disclosure in it.
Can we pause Lia for one client?
Can we pause Lia for one client?
Yes, at two levels. In Treatment pauses treatment-related messages for that person. The Provider Liaison toggle in the case header holds provider outreach for that one client while the Liaison keeps running for everyone else. Open provider requests are left in place rather than cancelled, and the work resumes when you unpause.
What happens if a client says stop?
What happens if a client says stop?
STOP or any equivalent stops all outbound contact immediately, and Lia does not resume. A casual "please stop texting me" gets one acknowledgement and an escalation to your team, then nothing further.
Does Lia call anyone?
Does Lia call anyone?
No. Lia texts clients and emails provider offices. It does not make phone calls.
Is this the same as the AI Receptionist?
Is this the same as the AI Receptionist?
No. Hona's AI Receptionist answers and qualifies inbound phone calls. Lia works the cases you already have, by text and email. Separate products, separate settings, and having one does not give you the other.
What happens to our Engage messages?
What happens to our Engage messages?
Under Company Settings → Project Types there is an option to pause notifications for enrolled clients, so your drips do not double-message someone Lia is already talking to. Turn it on when you start enrolling.
Can we try it safely first?
Can we try it safely first?
Yes. Live preview lets you enter a test phone number and play the client yourself, with the same agent and the same settings. It only operates on contacts it provisioned itself and refuses a number belonging to a real client, because the reset it performs is destructive. Each run starts clean and ends itself after 15 minutes of inactivity.
Why does Lia escalate so much at the start?
Why does Lia escalate so much at the start?
Because it would rather stop than guess. Early on, firm context is thin and there are few FAQs, so more questions fall outside what Lia can answer confidently. Fill in Firm context and add FAQs, and the rate comes down.
Where to go next
What is Lia?: the hub article, and how Lia Respond and the skills fit together.
Lia Respond: answering your clients' inbound questions: the reactive layer, including the admin and case manager setup steps.
Getting started with Lia: access and permissions: roles and permissions.
Agent Settings: teaching Lia about your firm: firm context, FAQs, and escalation rules.
The Provider directory: which providers Lia can contact: why an email address matters.
Guardrails: what Lia will and will not do: identity, contact hours, opt-outs, and HIPAA.
Testing Lia with Live preview: rehearsing against your own phone.
Conclusion
Most Lia problems come down to one of three things: a capability your firm has not had switched on, a role or permission on the person looking, or a missing detail on a contact or provider record. If none of the above matches what you are seeing, chat with our support team or email [email protected].