BJC Health System CEO will retire, system president will succeed him
Rich Liekweg has led the system for years and helped it become one of the nation’s largest academic health systems. Nick Barto, BJC’s president, will take over in October.
After serving as CEO of the BJC Health System for seven years, Rich Liekweg has announced his plans to retire.
Rich Liekweg, left, has announced his plans to retire as CEO of the BJC Health System. He will step down in October. Nick Barto, president of the health system, will succeed him as CEO.
Liekweg said this week that he plans to retire Oct. 1. BJC also announced that Nick Barto, president of the health system, will take over as CEO in October.
During his tenure, BJC has grown substantially, becoming one of the nation’s biggest academic health systems. Based in St. Louis, BJC operates 24 hospitals and more than 250 other healthcare locations in Missouri, southern Illinois, and eastern Kansas.
In 2024, BJC completed its merger with the Saint Luke’s Health System in Kansas City, forming an organization with $10 billion in revenue. BJC also employs 47,000 people.
When he retires, Liekweg will wrap up a career in the healthcare industry that has spanned nearly four decades. He has spent the last 16 years with the BJC Health System, becoming CEO in 2018. He praised the organization for providing “exceptional care to our patients and communities.”
“Together, we successfully navigated through unprecedented times in the industry, never losing sight of our singular purpose to improve the health and well-being of the communities we serve,” Liekweg said in a statement. “I am deeply proud of our caregivers, the culture we have created, and the values we share that place the patient at the center of all we do.”
Earlier this month, BJC announced that it has reached an agreement with CoxHealth to expand pediatric care in southwest Missouri. CoxHealth and St. Louis Children’s Hospital, part of BJC, will work together on a number of initiatives, including a pediatric outpatient center.
Under Liekweg, BJC also extended its long-running affiliation with Washington University and its School of Medicine.
Greg Bentz, chair of the BJC Health System board of directors, hailed Liekweg’s leadership.
“Rich’s impact on BJC and on health care as a whole has been nothing short of remarkable,” Bentz said in a statement. “His strategic vision, steady leadership, and deep commitment to our mission will leave a lasting legacy for years to come.”
Barto joined BJC in 2018 and became president of the system in 2023. With the merger with Saint Luke’s, Barto also became president of the system’s East Region in 2024. Previously, he held leadership roles with Catholic Health Initiatives and Novant Health.
“I look forward to working with our 47,000 team members to build on Rich’s vision that grew BJC into a super-regional health care leader, to continue to provide extraordinary care to the communities we serve, and to position BJC as a mission-oriented academic health care leader for all future generations,” Barto said in a statement.
In a LinkedIn post, Liekweg said it has been the “honor of a lifetime” to lead BJC. He also offered a vote of confidence for Barto as his successor.
He wrote: “Congratulations to my friend and exceptional leader, Nick Barto, on his appointment to lead this remarkable team—I know he will take BJC to new heights and continue building on our legacy of excellence and service!”
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