Rush University System for Health has joined the Vizient Community Contracting program to expand opportunities for local businesses and strengthen economic development across Chicago communities. Through the initiative, Rush will broaden its engagement with qualified local vendors and align more of its purchasing strategy with its anchor mission to improve community health and economic vitality.
Rush's Impact Purchasing Strategy already leverages the institution's economic power to drive community health and wealth on the West Side. By signing on to the contracting program, Rush has committed to further shifting part of its annual spend to qualified vendors that are an integral part of local communities.
“The past four years have been uniquely pivotal for Rush’s purchasing initiatives,” said Jeremy Strong, vice president of supply chain at Rush. “We’ve tripled our spending on Chicago’s West Side since the pandemic and shifted two major categories of spending to local Chicago vendors. Joining the Vizient Community Contracting program will help us expand those efforts by identifying additional opportunities to purchase locally and support economic growth in the communities we serve.”
Rush has cultivated strategic partnerships with its prime vendors, encouraged internal departments to purchase products and services from local vendors for events, and integrated hyperlocal purchasing and sustainability criteria into the bidding process for major contract renewals. Through the Vizient program, Rush will consider local vendors for more than 30 additional product and service categories — including transportation, food and biomedical services — that support hospitals and other large employers.
Local Chicago vendors are invited to join the program and benefit from the negotiated prices, terms and conditions. Vizient, which provides contracting services to more than half the nation’s healthcare providers, launched this innovative approach to supporting small businesses in 2020.
“Vizient is committed to advancing economic sustainability and increasing healthier outcomes,” said Cristina Indiveri, vice president of core tenet programs for Vizient. “Community contracting helps healthcare organizations and other companies deliver on their economic commitment to their communities. By investing purchasing dollars and directing resources to small, local businesses, Rush is supporting area growth and development.”
