White Sox partner faces scrutiny over gender care, drag events and DEI

When Chicago White Sox fans look past the outfield wall at Guaranteed Rate Field, they see the logo of Rush University Medical Center, the team’s official healthcare partner.

What they aren’t told at the concession stand is where that health system’s cash actually goes: operating a pediatric gender clinic, hosting a “PRIDE Charity Drag Brunch,” enforcing mandatory diversity retreats, and paying its top executive nearly $3.7 million in total compensation.

Now, White Sox fans are getting a closer look at the team’s healthcare partner.

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As fans head to Guaranteed Rate Field for the White Sox-Astros series, Consumers’ Research is rolling out a campaign of billboards, street posters, and TV ads targeting the team’s healthcare partner.

Consumer watchdog group Consumers’ Research launched the “Rush Exposed” campaign, which it exclusively shared with OutKick and Fox News Digital.

Rush-White Sox partnership under fire

Rush signed a multi-year sponsorship as the White Sox’s official healthcare partner, paying tens of thousands of dollars for stadium branding, game sponsorships and other marketing.

An American flag is displayed during the national anthem before the game between the Chicago White Sox and Detroit Tigers at Guaranteed Rate Field on July 4, 2019, in Chicago, Ill. (Getty Images)

The Consumers’ Research campaign directs fans to RushExposed.com, where Consumers’ Research details its allegations against Rush, including its sponsorship of the Chicago White Sox, millions spent on advertising, DEI initiatives, pediatric gender transition services, and “Pride Drag Brunches.”

“Rush is betraying what should be every hospital’s core mission by using its time, energy, and taxpayer support to promote radical woke activism,” Will Hild, executive director of Consumers’ Research, said in a statement.

“Not only does Rush have a history of prioritizing DEI, child sex-change procedures, and climate alarmism, the hospital also has a troubling history of questionable spending on non-medical initiatives completely unrelated to patient care, like its partnership with the Chicago White Sox.”

Clinic funded ‘drag brunches’

The campaign focuses heavily on Rush’s Affirm Center for Health, a clinic providing so-called gender-affirming services, including mental health support, for minors.

Dr. Loren S. Schechter leads Rush’s gender surgery program and is also president-elect of WPATH (World Professional Association for Transgender Health), an organization that publishes standards for transgender healthcare, including previous care for minors.

Rush previously offered gender-affirming care for minors, but in 2025 it announced it has not provided those services for patients under 18 since 2023. 

Rush’s internal DEI committee also organized a “PRIDE Charity Drag Brunch,” with proceeds benefiting the Affirm Center.

Pope Leo XIV addresses Catholic faithful on the scoreboard at Rate Field, home of the Chicago White Sox, during a celebration and Mass to honor his selection as pope on June 14, 2025, in Chicago, Ill. Born Robert Prevost in Chicago and raised in south suburban Dolton, he is the first American leader of the Catholic Church and a Chicago White Sox fan. (Getty Images)

Administrators also required hospital managers to complete “implicit bias” training while pediatric staff at Rush University Children’s Hospital attended DEI retreats covering “microaggressions” and systemic racism.

Staff layoffs follow $3.7M CEO paycheck

The campaign also points to what Consumers’ Research calls a stark financial contrast.

While Rush recently laid off workers citing financial pressures, public tax filings show CEO Dr. Omar Lateef pulled in nearly $3.7 million in total compensation in FY2024, up from $2.9 million the previous year.

Guaranteed Rate Field, formerly U.S. Cellular Field and home of the Chicago White Sox, is shown in Chicago, Ill., on Nov. 5, 2016. (Getty Images)

Beyond his salary, the nonprofit also covered Lateef’s housing allowance and membership dues at private organizations like the Economic Club of Chicago.

Even as Rush cut jobs, it continued funding White Sox sponsorships and climate initiatives, including a goal of 100 percent renewable energy by 2030 and vendor policies that weigh race and social impact.

Rush received more than $194 million in federal funding in FY2025 while maintaining its tax-exempt status.

Consumers’ Research says Rush became the latest target of its national “Bad Medicine” campaign because the group believes nonprofit hospital systems are using taxpayer support and tax-exempt status to advance political ideology instead of prioritizing patient care.

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Rush paid to put its name in front of White Sox fans. Now, Consumers’ Research wants those same fans asking what that name stands for.

OutKick reached out to the White Sox and Rush University System for Health for comment.

Send us your thoughts: alejandro.avila@outkick.com / Follow along on X: @alejandroaveela