Chicago-based Rush University System for Health’s new digital care membership is designed to streamline access to virtual services and extend the system’s reach far beyond Chicago.
Called Rush Connect+, the $19-per-month subscription service is part of the academic health system’s broader digital transformation strategy and aims to meet rising consumer expectations for convenience, speed and personalization.
“We’re defining success here as expanding access to patients who want a less traditional relationship with their health system,” Ben Wolfe, senior director of digital transformation at Rush, told Becker’s. “It’s sort of this Amazon-like experience, where folks just want to solve a problem — particularly younger and healthier patients — and don’t necessarily want a primary care provider or the full hospital experience when they’ve got a sniffle.”
The service, announced July 14, includes 24/7 access to virtual urgent care and a dedicated personal assistant — which Mr. Wolfe likens to a hotel concierge — to help patients navigate appointments, questions and care coordination. It also plugs directly into Rush’s broader virtual care infrastructure, including virtual primary care, urgent care and a same-day virtual specialty service.
“Rush Connect+ is really part of a broader vision under the Rush Connect umbrella,” Paul Casey, MD, senior vice president and chief medical officer at Rush, told Becker’s. “Our goal is to create a radical degree of access that hasn’t been present in the market before, and to compete with many other offerings that can’t match the quality we know we can provide.”
One of the distinguishing features of Rush Connect+ is its nationwide availability. Dr. Casey noted this could appeal not only to consumers seeking affiliation with an academic health brand, but also to employers managing a distributed workforce.
“We often hear from people in Florida, Michigan or Wisconsin who still want to access Rush services,” Dr. Casey said. “This offering lets us extend that high-quality care to them, no matter where they live.”
Mr. Wolfe emphasized that unlike many national telehealth offerings focused on single episodes of care, Rush’s model is designed to create continuity and deeper clinical engagement.
“Many services will treat a symptom and move on. But if it’s your seventh sinus infection of the year, we’ll connect you to an ENT the next day,” Mr. Wolfe said. “You’re not just getting convenience — you’re getting a path to long-term solutions.”
Balancing affordability with value
Rush determined the $19 monthly price point through a mix of competitive benchmarking, patient feedback and internal cost analysis. Mr. Wolfe pointed to Amazon’s One Medical ($9/month) and pediatric offerings like Blueberry Health ($20/month) as signals of what consumers were willing to pay.
“We had a ceiling in mind based on market expectations,” Mr. Wolfe said. “We also factored in the cost of the technology, the virtual urgent care visits and our personal assistant staffing. That $19 became the sweet spot.”
The health system also leaned on a standing feedback panel of more than 3,000 Rush patients to gauge pricing sensitivity and service preferences.
Measuring success
Rush launched the service in July and is tracking early adoption rates, patient satisfaction and long-term engagement. System leaders are particularly interested in understanding whether members use the platform as a true front door to Rush’s broader care ecosystem.
“Our analytics teams are looking at what patients do within the program — and what happens outside of it,” Mr. Wolfe said. “Are they getting care when they need it? Are we keeping them healthy and connected to Rush in the long run?”
Dr. Casey said ongoing refinement will hinge on that feedback loop.
“We’re going to continue using that Amazon model — being super responsive to our patients’ needs,” he said. “Ultimately, they’ll tell us whether we’re hitting the mark.”
