A leader in the field of health care administration, R. Lee Piekarz has more than 30 years’ experience managing business operations and finances for organizations across the Chicagoland area, including complex hospital and health systems, home health agencies and nursing facilities. As chief financial officer (CFO) at City of Hope® Cancer Center Chicago, Piekarz oversees a wide range of business, finance and clinical operations, from health information management and pharmacy services to the hospital’s emergency room, anesthesiology and hospitalist teams.
Piekarz’s primary responsibilities are to ensure the financial health of the organization’s clinical locations in Chicago and across Illinois – a role that incorporates leading financial strategy and offering business support to other teams – as well as ensuring all locations meet their financial regulatory requirements. He played a key role in supporting City of Hope Cancer Care North Shore during its acquisition and move to its current location in Morton Grove, where it can offer enhanced care for patients in the area.
Piekarz is also committed to expanding access to innovative care for all Illinois patients, working to negotiate payer contracts that provide more coverage for Illinois Medicaid plans and playing an instrumental role in the addition of new clinical technologies such as 3D mammography and hepatic artery infusion (HAI) therapy for liver cancer. Prior to joining City of Hope in 2019, Piekarz held positions at several major health systems across Illinois and served as a health care consultant for providers in the state and beyond.
After completing his undergraduate studies at DePaul University in Chicago, Piekarz earned an MBA with a specialization in health care management at Lake Forest Graduate School of Management in Lake Forest, Illinois. Dedicated to serving his community, Piekarz has been a board member of the Great Lakes Credit Union for more than 25 years and serves as finance chair of the College of Lake County Foundation Board of Directors.
