How the YMCA of Greater Rochester Reduced Healthcare Costs and Boosted Employee Wellness
Over three years, the YMCA of Greater Rochester saw a 69% decline in urgent care claims, a +95 NPS, and documented decline in total health plan costs after implementing EZaccessMD.
Sands Family YMCA, Canandaigua, New York
The Results Speak for Themselves
Three years of partnership delivering measurable healthcare outcomes:
69% fewer urgent care claims (decline over three years)
+95 Net Promoter Score (exceptional employee satisfaction)
Documented decline in total plan costs over the same period
| Year | Urgent Care Reduction | Utilization Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | ↓ 39% | 65% |
| 2023 | ↓ 37% | 48% |
| 2024 | ↓ 19% | 54% |
The Challenge: Rising Healthcare Costs in a Mission-Driven Organization
The YMCA of Greater Rochester is known for strengthening community health through youth programs, wellness services, and neighborhood-based outreach. In recent years, YMCA leadership applied that same lens to its own workforce and asked a practical benefits question: How easy is it for employees and their families to access appropriate care when they need it?
Like many employers, the YMCA faced cost pressure while also managing the realities of a diverse workforce with variable schedules. Traditional access points, including primary care offices and walk-in urgent care centers, often come with friction. Employees may wait days for appointments, spend hours in waiting rooms, or defer care entirely.
Our responsibility is to ensure employees can access care without unnecessary friction. Improving accessibility strengthened both employee experience and plan effectiveness.
The Solution: EZaccessMD's Mobile Urgent Care Model
To reduce friction, the YMCA implemented EZaccessMD's mobile urgent care model. Employees could initiate care by phone and, when clinically appropriate, diagnostic services would be delivered directly to the employee's home.
The aim was not simply to add another vendor, but to offer a reliable access point that employees would actually use.
YMCA Employee Benefits, the nonprofit Trust that purchases healthcare coverage for Ys nationwide, regularly reviews utilization patterns. In reviewing the Rochester YMCA population over a three-year period, the Trust observed a meaningful decline in traditional urgent care claims. Total health plan costs went down over that same period.
Care that comes to you
- 1Call or Video24/7/365 physician consult initiated instantly
- 2Mobile DispatchUnit sent to employee's home if needed
- 3Full DiagnosticsX-ray, EKG, labs, vitals at the bedside
- 4Rx & ResolutionDiagnosis & e-prescription, often in <2 hrs
As urgent care claims declined, our total health plan costs went down over the same period. The financial data confirmed that improving access directly reduced claim expense.
It saves employees time and sick days, which directly impacts productivity.
A Model That Carries Relevance Everywhere
The outcome was significant because it aligned mission, operations, and financial stewardship. For community-based employers, benefits strategies must support recruiting and retention, reduce avoidable disruptions, and demonstrate value through measurable outcomes.
The Rochester YMCA experience carries relevance for association health plans. When a Trust or association can compare outcomes across member organizations, it becomes easier to identify models that are both scalable and measurable.
Access is not only a member experience issue, it can also be a utilization lever. When care is easy to reach and responsive, employees may choose that pathway earlier, rather than defaulting to higher-friction or higher-cost settings.
Improved access aligned with our mission and produced measurable operational and financial results.
Convenience Is the Utilization Lever
Traditional telehealth leaves critical gaps: 99% of telemedicine physicians don't order strep tests; 85% skip ankle X-rays for pain. EZaccessMD closes that gap by bringing the diagnostics to your employees.
When care is easy to reach, employees choose it early, avoiding the ER spiral that drives plan costs up. For association health plans like YMCA Employee Benefits, the Rochester results offer a scalable, measurable model others can evaluate and adopt.
What YMCA Employees Are Saying
Survey responses from YMCA of Greater Rochester employees after a visit. Each gave the service a 10 out of 10.
- NPS: 10/10
Great customer service. From the moment I made my first phone call to the last phone call with the verdict of my visit it only took 2 and a half hours. The woman who came to my home was kind and knowledgeable.
- NPS: 10/10
I love that I can just call and I get a call back within 10 minutes. Not to mention they come to the house when needed. It's an excellent service.
- NPS: 10/10
I loved how quick and easy it was. I didn't have to call my PCP office, make an appointment, and then spend hours in a waiting room. I had an answer and a prescription in 20 minutes.
- NPS: 10/10
Love the service... timely and convenient. No trips to the doctor or urgent care.
About the YMCA of Greater Rochester
For youth development · For healthy living · For social responsibility
The YMCA of Greater Rochester is a community nonprofit built around three commitments: youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. Its newest branch, the Sands Family YMCA at 351 North Street in Canandaigua, opened on October 2, 2023.
A $13.5 million gift from the Sands Family Foundation anchored the project. A $1 million gift from Rochester native Brian F. Prince named the Prince Aquatic Center, a nearly 10,000 square foot facility with a warm-water pool and splash pad, a six-lane exercise pool, a whirlpool, and a dry sauna.
Run the numbers for your team
See what EZaccessMD saves for your member count, or talk it through with our team.