Featured | Jul 9, 2025
Based on an in-depth interview, this article features Dr. Geoffrey Rutledge, a board-certified physician and co-founder of HealthTap, sharing his vision for virtual primary care. From AI-powered pre-visit interviews to flexible clinician schedules, discover how telehealth is transforming the future of healthcare delivery.
In this comprehensive article, we explore the insights shared by Dr. Geoffrey Rutledge, a board-certified physician and co-founder of HealthTap, during an interview with Kyle Kahveci and Dave from ACEA.
The discussion covers Dr. Rutledge's pioneering journey in telehealth spanning over 15 years, the transformative potential of virtual primary care, and how technology is reshaping the doctor-patient relationship.
We examine the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare delivery, the critical importance of establishing ongoing primary care relationships, and innovative approaches to continuing medical education. Additionally, the article examines how telehealth addresses the primary care crisis in America, the flexibility it offers to healthcare providers, and the challenges of scaling virtual care to meet the growing demand.
Let’s dive in!
Watch the full interview with Dr. Rutledge on YouTube here.
In an era where primary care appointments are increasingly difficult to obtain and emergency rooms are overwhelmed, the need for innovative healthcare delivery solutions has never been more critical.
Dr. Geoffrey Rutledge, a pioneer in the telehealth space with over 40 years of clinical experience, shares his vision for transforming healthcare access through technology. This in-depth interview, conducted by Kyle Kahveci and Dave from ACEA, reveals how virtual care is not just a temporary solution but a fundamental shift in how we think about and deliver healthcare.
CE App supports the growing telehealth industry by providing comprehensive continuing education (CE) tracking, engagement, and compliance solutions specifically designed for telehealth organizations. As virtual care expands across state lines, managing multi-state licenses and CE requirements becomes increasingly complex, a challenge CE App helps solve.
Dr. Geoffrey Rutledge brings a unique combination of clinical expertise and technological innovation to the healthcare space. As a board-certified internist and emergency physician with a PhD in Medical Computing from Stanford, he has spent his career at the intersection of medicine and technology.
His journey includes creating the first consumer health website that became WebMD, working at Epocrates to provide point-of-care information for doctors, and co-founding HealthTap in 2010.
“My mission has been to deliver primary care. What I desire the most is for every man, woman, and child in America to have a doctor that knows them, that they can turn to when they need advice and help for their medical issues,” Dr. Rutledge explains.
This vision drives HealthTap's commitment to making quality healthcare accessible through technology platforms.
Dr. Rutledge's journey in digital health began with creating consumer health information platforms and evolved into a deeper understanding of how technology could fundamentally improve the doctor-patient relationship. When he started HealthTap 15 years ago, the technology for high-quality video consultations didn't yet exist.
“When we first started, the video codec did not exist to allow for high-resolution video on mobile devices, but we anticipated it was coming and prepared for it,” Dr. Rutledge recalls.
This forward-thinking approach positioned HealthTap to launch video consultations in 2012, firmly believing in the role of virtual care as a complement to traditional office visits.
What began as a vision for transactional urgent care evolved into something much more profound. Dr. Rutledge shares a surprising discovery:
“What I didn't fully appreciate, and it took some time to realize, is the scope of what's actually possible to do virtually. When you have a high-resolution audio and video connection on a platform that is bringing patients and doctors together, it is quite surprising how, most of the time, most of what the doctors need to do, certainly in primary care, can be delivered virtually.”
Kyle Kahveci: Where do you see things going for HealthTap and the telehealth industry at large beyond the AI-based 'X' in the coming years?
Dr. Rutledge identifies a fundamental challenge in how telehealth has been perceived and utilized:
“Telemedicine got started on a much more transactional basis where people perceive that it was a way for someone to get something that they wanted. You know, 'I have my ear hurts. I think I need an antibiotic. I'm going to push this button and connect with the doctor that I don't know for a quick transaction to get the thing I want.”
He emphasizes that while transactional urgent care has its place, the real value lies in ongoing primary care relationships that address:
The challenges facing American healthcare are stark:
“One of the wonderful things that telehealth does is it enables people to connect with a primary care doctor in a much more convenient and also less expensive fashion,” Dr. Rutledge explains.
For telehealth organizations managing providers across multiple states, these challenges are compounded by complex compliance requirements. CE App's automated tracking and compliance monitoring tools help virtual care teams focus on patient care rather than administrative burden.
Kyle Kahveci: Any kind of best practices, things you've learned that you would say, hey, I learned these things the hard way. Here's some advice. What kind of advice would you share?
Dr. Rutledge reveals a counterintuitive finding about virtual care that challenges traditional assumptions:
“Even more important and somewhat counterintuitively, we discovered that doctors and patients can connect in very deep and meaningful ways when they've never met in person in the office. The doctor has not laid on hands, but the quality of the connection and the fact that when you have a video visit, the doctor is focusing entirely on the patient looking at it. It's the only thing they have.”
This focused attention creates a unique dynamic where patients feel truly heard and seen, often resulting in stronger therapeutic relationships than traditional rushed office visits.
Dr. Rutledge emphasizes the objective, measurable benefits of having a primary care doctor:
“When people have a doctor they trust that they can turn to who’s available to them when they need them, the presence of a primary care doctor in a patient's life means they actually live longer measurably. And interestingly, much higher rates of preventive healthcare services are delivered, and interestingly, their total healthcare costs go down.”
Dave: Any unique or noteworthy tech services or technology your team uses to get the job done?
HealthTap has implemented AI in a supportive role that enhances rather than replaces the doctor-patient interaction:
“We've implemented AI as a method of doing a pre-visit interview. We take advantage of the power of the large language model to understand what people are saying and to engage the patient in a conversation which is very similar to what the doctor will do when they first see the patient.”
This approach provides several benefits:
The HealthTap platform prioritizes accessibility:
“Once you're established with a doctor, you can send texts to your doctor. It goes directly to the doctor and the doctors will respond to you individually, usually right away,” Dr. Rutledge explains.
Kyle Kahveci: I'm curious to hear a little bit on the clinician side too... I'd love it if you could talk a little bit about the role of continuous improvement, the lens of CME for clinicians in telehealth.
HealthTap's unique approach to CME began with its foundation as a question-and-answer service:
Dr. Rutledge recalls, “We started the company actually as a question-and-answer service... We reached out to doctors and gave them the opportunity to help people by answering their questions. We actually didn't charge people to ask a question that we would just show to the doctors. We also didn't pay the doctors to give answers.”
This created an unexpected outcome:
HealthTap has integrated continuing education directly into clinical practice:
Dr. Rutledge reveals, “One of the features that we've seen, one of the behaviors of the doctors, is they're using our platform to try and improve their knowledge, but they're improving it in ways that are relevant to the things that people care about.”
HealthTap enables doctors to:
This innovative approach to CME aligns with the broader industry's need for flexible, integrated continuing education solutions. As telehealth providers work across multiple states, managing CE requirements becomes increasingly complex, a challenge that CE App's multi-state license management tools are specifically designed to address.
Kyle Kahveci: What kinds of things are keeping you up at night? What things do you worry about?
Dr. Rutledge shares both excitement and concern about HealthTap's rapid growth:
“We've now become the preferred telehealth provider for health sharing ministries, where they are enabling primary care to their members. And so we're seeing a huge upswing in volume. We have large national retailer distributions... My worries are being able to find more doctors and getting them on the platform, able to respond to the rising demand that we're having.”
Virtual care offers unprecedented flexibility for healthcare providers:
Dr. R emphasizes the freedom the platform offers: “For doctors, it's an incredible opportunity to have a more flexible way to work. Doctors can work from anywhere without the requirement to commute to work, without strict business hours, because the platform becomes available to the doctor to work on their schedule when they want to.”
Key benefits for providers include:
Dr. Rutledge outlines the pathway for doctors to join HealthTap:
“We're looking for primary care doctors, ideally those with multiple state licenses, to work with us in the medical group,” Dr. Rutledge explains.
The primary challenge facing telehealth adoption isn't technology or quality, it's awareness:
Dr. Rutledge points out, “The real impediment or the limiting factor for HealthTap has simply been a matter of getting the word out. Getting people to understand the opportunity to find and keep a doctor virtually has not been well understood.”
As telehealth transitions from an emergency pandemic measure to a permanent healthcare fixture, organizations face new challenges in scaling their operations. Dr. Rutledge's vision extends beyond individual consultations to creating a comprehensive primary care infrastructure that serves entire populations.
The future isn't about replacing in-person care but creating a hybrid model where virtual and physical care complement each other seamlessly. This integration requires sophisticated compliance management, particularly as providers work across state lines: a complexity that specialized tools like CE App's telehealth solutions are designed to address.
Dr. Rutledge's decades-long journey in digital health culminates in a simple yet powerful vision: universal access to primary care through technology.
According to Dr. Rutledge, the evidence is clear, "When people have a trusted primary care doctor, they live longer, healthier lives while spending less on healthcare."
“What we're doing is why I've been at this company and persisted through thick and thin... to create a service that's actually available for everyone, and it's live and it's real now,” Dr. Rutledge reflects.
As telehealth organizations scale to meet growing demand, the importance of robust support systems becomes evident. From managing multi-state licenses to tracking continuing education requirements, the administrative complexity can overwhelm providers and organizations alike. This is where specialized solutions like CE App become essential, enabling healthcare teams to focus on what matters most: patient care.
Managing a growing virtual care workforce requires sophisticated tools for compliance and continuing education. CE App offers comprehensive solutions designed explicitly for telehealth teams, including:
Discover how CE App helps telehealth organizations streamline operations and ensure compliance.
Disclaimer: This post contains a modified transcript and is not a verbatim representation of the speakers' words. It is intended to capture the essence of the ideas discussed. For the complete context, please refer to the original interview. The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect our organization's official policy or position.
According to Dr. Rutledge, virtual care can handle most primary care needs effectively. While it doesn't replace all in-person care, high-resolution video visits can address the majority of primary care issues, from acute illnesses like sinus infections and sore throats to managing chronic conditions. Virtual visits often create deeper patient-doctor connections due to the focused, undivided attention during consultations.
Unlike urgent care for one-off non-emergency conditions, a virtual primary care provider (virtual PCP) offers ongoing care management and builds a lasting relationship with patients. Your virtual primary care team can manage everything from blood pressure monitoring to specialist referrals, creating a comprehensive care plan for your overall health.
Virtual primary care services can manage most health concerns, including:
Most health insurance plans now provide insurance coverage for virtual visits. Many health plans treat virtual primary care the same as in-person visits to a doctor's office. Check with your specific insurance provider about coverage for virtual primary care providers.
Yes, your virtual PCP can order lab tests, imaging, and other diagnostic services. They'll send orders to facilities near where patients are located, and you'll receive a welcome kit with instructions. Test results are reviewed during follow-up video visits with your provider.
Virtual primary care serves patients of all ages, including children and elderly family members. Nurse practitioners and doctors in internal medicine provide age-appropriate care through secure video visit platforms accessible via computer or mobile device.
Unlike traditional in-person waits at a doctor's office, virtual primary care offers exceptional convenience. You can schedule same-day or next-day appointments through your account, even on most major holidays. This convenient access helps you stay healthy without disrupting your routine.
While virtual primary care can handles most needs, in-person health care is necessary for:
Your virtual care team will guide you when in-person care is needed and coordinate the transition seamlessly.
Your virtual primary care team manages medications electronically, sending prescriptions directly to your pharmacy. They track all your medications in one place, monitor for interactions, and connect with specialists to ensure coordinated care across all your health needs.
Beyond convenience, virtual primary care delivers measurable benefits:
AI serves as a force multiplier for doctors by conducting thorough pre-visit interviews. AI allows doctors to spend more quality time with patients, address complex issues, and explore social determinants of health that might otherwise be overlooked in time-constrained visits.
Research shows that people with a trusted primary care provider:
HealthTap offers unlimited Category 1 CME credits through its question-and-answer system. Doctors can earn credits by researching and answering patient questions, with integrated access to medical journals and research databases.
The main barrier isn't technology or quality, it's awareness. Many patients don't realize they can establish ongoing primary care relationships virtually, not just use telehealth for urgent care transactions. People are still discovering they can connect with a dedicated virtual primary care provider for comprehensive health management.
Virtual care offers providers:
