Omar Lateef, MD

Omar Lateef is President and CEO of Rush University System for Health and Rush University Medical Center, where he leads one of Chicago's premier academic health systems with a defining focus on clinical excellence, health equity, and innovation. A pulmonary and critical care physician by training, he is known for a hands-on, mission-driven leadership style, and famously guided Rush through the COVID-19 pandemic, cementing its reputation as a trusted community and national healthcare leader.

Omar joined Rush in 2002 and rose through roles including director of the medical intensive care unit, chief medical officer, and president of the Medical Center, before becoming CEO of the health system in 2022. In 2025, STAT News named him to its STATUS List of leaders shaping healthcare - the only academic medical center CEO to be recognized. He earned a bachelor's degree in religious studies from the University of Florida, his DO from Des Moines University, and completed his fellowship in pulmonary and critical care medicine at Rush.