Transformational
As we reflect on the past year at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, we do so with deep gratitude for the extraordinary dedication of our teams, the trust placed in us by patients and families, the steadfast partnership of our community of supporters, and your own unwavering dedication to our mission. Together, we navigated a complex and evolving policy environment that tested our resilience and, at the same time, revealed the very best of who we are.
FY25 was a year defined by exceptional achievement and transformative progress. Across every pillar of our mission: clinical care, advocacy, research, and education, we delivered record results while laying the foundation for our next era of growth propelled by our Pioneering Our Future Strategic Plan. We are increasingly positioned not only as a leading children’s hospital, but as an academic health system advancing child health in bold new ways.
Our clinical teams cared for 266,613 individual patients this year, delivering safe, high-quality care in every setting. For the first time in our history, we reduced reportable patient safety events to fewer than 100, a milestone that represents thousands of safer patient encounters and countless avoided harms. More than 90% of families told us they would recommend Lurie Children’s, reflecting our enduring commitment to compassionate, equitable care.
We also demonstrated strong financial stewardship, achieving an $80 million operating margin that provides us the resources to reinvest in our people, programs, and future. At the same time, we invested boldly in infrastructure to expand access, from opening our new Schaumburg Outpatient Center to advancing community-centered care on Chicago’s West Side and enhancing our downtown campus.
These accomplishments reflect a team united by purpose, and a community committed to helping children thrive. With our mission at the center of all we do, we look ahead with confidence and resolve to pioneer a healthier future for every child.
In gratitude,
Karen S. Sauder, Chair, Medical Center, Lurie Children’s Board of Directors
Dr. Thomas Shanley, President & CEO
Dr. Thomas Shanley, President & CEO and Karen S. Sauder, Chair
Lurie Children’s clinical teams continue to lead nationally and globally, delivering the most advanced care for children with the most complex conditions. This year, Dermatology became the first qualified treatment center in the United States for a groundbreaking gene therapy to treat a rare and devastating pediatric skin disorder and our tenth FDA-approved gene therapy overall. In transplantation, our teams achieved two historic milestones: the Hospital’s first combined liver/heart transplant and first kidney/heart transplant, building on our national leadership in pediatric kidney transplantation. These achievements reflect extraordinary teamwork, scientific rigor, and an unwavering commitment to innovation, quality, and compassionate care for every child and family we serve.
This year marked 50 years of transformational impact in our Spina Bifida Center, a nationally recognized model for multidisciplinary, lifelong care. We also strengthened key specialty programs through the recruitment of world-class physician leaders. Dr. Tara Henderson joined as the Department Chair of Pediatrics for Lurie Children’s and Founders’ Board Centennial Professor with Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, bringing a powerful focus on advancing child health through academic medicine. Dr. Elisabeth Martin, A.C. Buehler Professor in Surgery, joined as Director of Pulmonary Artery Reconstruction and Surgical Outcomes Research, further elevating our Heart Center as one of the world’s premier pediatric cardiac programs.
Through strategic advocacy and trusted partnerships, Lurie Children’s secured one of the most significant policy wins in our history. Working with the Illinois Health and Hospital Association and the State of Illinois, we successfully advocated for temporary Medicaid reimbursement increases bringing $1.5 billion in additional funding statewide, and an estimated $100 million to Lurie Children’s in 2025 alone. This critical bridge funding provides stability ahead of anticipated federal Medicaid cuts beginning in 2028 and ensures we can continue to care for every child who needs us, without compromise.
In a rapidly evolving policy environment, Lurie Children’s strengthened its role as a leading voice for children. Through our Government Relations Strategy Steering Committee, expert working groups addressed issues ranging from Medicaid and National Institutes for Health funding to immigration, gender-affirming care, and gun violence prevention. Our teams helped shape 15 child health bills in Illinois, including landmark updates to the Sexual Assault Survivors Emergency Treatment Act and legislation enabling family members to serve as paid home health aides. All this work demonstrates how expertise, persistence, and advocacy translate into meaningful protections for children and families.
Lurie Children’s researchers are translating discovery into real-world impact at remarkable speed. This year, Dr. Libby Alpern, Division Head of Emergency Medicine, led a multi-center study analyzing data from more than 2.3 million emergency department visits to develop AI models that identify children at high risk for sepsis within 48 hours of arrival. These models enable clinicians to deliver lifesaving interventions earlier, before organ dysfunction develops. With more than 60 projects in various stages of licensing or commercialization, our research enterprise continues to shape the future of pediatric care through innovation, precision, and scale.
Major investments and national recognition accelerated breakthroughs in pediatric cancer and complex disease. Supported by a $4 million gift from Cal’s Angels, Lurie Children’s launched one of only a few Advanced Leukemia Clinical and Research Programs in the U.S., offering CAR T-cell therapy and novel immunotherapies. In neuro-oncology, Dr. Miriam Bornhorst, Attending Physician in Hematology, Oncology, Neuro-Oncology & Stem Cell Transplantation, received a $3.7 million Cancer Moonshot award to deploy optical genome mapping for pediatric brain tumors ushering in a new era of truly personalized diagnosis and treatment for children facing devastating conditions.
Education remains central to Lurie Children’s mission. Our residency and fellowship programs rank among the most competitive in the nation, reflecting the strength of our partnership with Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. With a $42 million annual investment in graduate medical education, we train 60% of Illinois’ pediatric subspecialists at a time when fewer than 8% of medical graduates choose pediatrics. This year, our residency match ranked third nationally, and many fellowship programs matched their first-choice candidates affirming our role as a premier training ground for future pediatric leaders.
Our educational impact extends far beyond our walls. In its inaugural year, Lurie Children’s nurses provided training across hospitals, schools, and orphanages in Grenada, building local capacity and fostering sustainable pediatric care. Closer to home, our Discovering Healthcare Careers program is creating pathways for Chicago high school students to explore healthcare professions, with several alumni now employed at Lurie Children’s. Together, these programs reflect our commitment to workforce development, equity, and opportunity locally and globally.
Philanthropy reached a historic milestone with the close of the Campaign for Every Child, which raised an extraordinary $722 million, far exceeding its original $500 million goal. In the most recent fiscal year, the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago Foundation surpassed every annual target, a testament to the generosity and shared purpose of our donor community. These resources are transforming care, accelerating discovery, expanding access, and strengthening our ability to meet children’s needs today and for generations to come.
Today, 40% of children with genetic and rare diseases will never receive a diagnosis, and 95% have no treatment options. That is a threshold we cannot accept. This year, visionary philanthropy helped Lurie Children’s take a bold step toward changing what’s possible for families navigating the diagnostic and therapeutic odyssey of rare disease. Don and Anne Edwards made a $11 million investment to launch the Edwards Family Division of Genetics and Rare Diseases, accelerating a future where breakthroughs are tested, refined, and shared far beyond Chicagoland. Their gift is already igniting critical capabilities: bringing long-read sequencing in-house to reduce diagnostic waits from three months to under two weeks; expanding our clinical genetics team from two to ten physicians to cut appointment wait times from two years to under six months; and establishing Illinois’ first pediatric genetics training program to address a profound workforce gap.
Lurie Children’s clinical teams continue to lead nationally and globally, delivering the most advanced care for children with the most complex conditions. This year, Dermatology became the first qualified treatment center in the United States for a groundbreaking gene therapy to treat a rare and devastating pediatric skin disorder and our tenth FDA-approved gene therapy overall. In transplantation, our teams achieved two historic milestones: the Hospital’s first combined liver/heart transplant and first kidney/heart transplant, building on our national leadership in pediatric kidney transplantation. These achievements reflect extraordinary teamwork, scientific rigor, and an unwavering commitment to innovation, quality, and compassionate care for every child and family we serve.
This year marked 50 years of transformational impact in our Spina Bifida Center, a nationally recognized model for multidisciplinary, lifelong care. We also strengthened key specialty programs through the recruitment of world-class physician leaders. Dr. Tara Henderson joined as the Department Chair of Pediatrics for Lurie Children’s and Founders’ Board Centennial Professor with Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, bringing a powerful focus on advancing child health through academic medicine. Dr. Elisabeth Martin, A.C. Buehler Professor in Surgery, joined as Director of Pulmonary Artery Reconstruction and Surgical Outcomes Research, further elevating our Heart Center as one of the world’s premier pediatric cardiac programs.
Through strategic advocacy and trusted partnerships, Lurie Children’s secured one of the most significant policy wins in our history. Working with the Illinois Health and Hospital Association and the State of Illinois, we successfully advocated for temporary Medicaid reimbursement increases bringing $1.5 billion in additional funding statewide, and an estimated $100 million to Lurie Children’s in 2025 alone. This critical bridge funding provides stability ahead of anticipated federal Medicaid cuts beginning in 2028 and ensures we can continue to care for every child who needs us, without compromise.
In a rapidly evolving policy environment, Lurie Children’s strengthened its role as a leading voice for children. Through our Government Relations Strategy Steering Committee, expert working groups addressed issues ranging from Medicaid and National Institutes for Health funding to immigration, gender-affirming care, and gun violence prevention. Our teams helped shape 15 child health bills in Illinois, including landmark updates to the Sexual Assault Survivors Emergency Treatment Act and legislation enabling family members to serve as paid home health aides. All this work demonstrates how expertise, persistence, and advocacy translate into meaningful protections for children and families.
Lurie Children’s researchers are translating discovery into real-world impact at remarkable speed. This year, Dr. Libby Alpern, Division Head of Emergency Medicine, led a multi-center study analyzing data from more than 2.3 million emergency department visits to develop AI models that identify children at high risk for sepsis within 48 hours of arrival. These models enable clinicians to deliver lifesaving interventions earlier, before organ dysfunction develops. With more than 60 projects in various stages of licensing or commercialization, our research enterprise continues to shape the future of pediatric care through innovation, precision, and scale.
Major investments and national recognition accelerated breakthroughs in pediatric cancer and complex disease. Supported by a $4 million gift from Cal’s Angels, Lurie Children’s launched one of only a few Advanced Leukemia Clinical and Research Programs in the U.S., offering CAR T-cell therapy and novel immunotherapies. In neuro-oncology, Dr. Miriam Bornhorst, Attending Physician in Hematology, Oncology, Neuro-Oncology & Stem Cell Transplantation, received a $3.7 million Cancer Moonshot award to deploy optical genome mapping for pediatric brain tumors ushering in a new era of truly personalized diagnosis and treatment for children facing devastating conditions.
Education remains central to Lurie Children’s mission. Our residency and fellowship programs rank among the most competitive in the nation, reflecting the strength of our partnership with Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. With a $42 million annual investment in graduate medical education, we train 60% of Illinois’ pediatric subspecialists at a time when fewer than 8% of medical graduates choose pediatrics. This year, our residency match ranked third nationally, and many fellowship programs matched their first-choice candidates affirming our role as a premier training ground for future pediatric leaders.
Our educational impact extends far beyond our walls. In its inaugural year, Lurie Children’s nurses provided training across hospitals, schools, and orphanages in Grenada, building local capacity and fostering sustainable pediatric care. Closer to home, our Discovering Healthcare Careers program is creating pathways for Chicago high school students to explore healthcare professions, with several alumni now employed at Lurie Children’s. Together, these programs reflect our commitment to workforce development, equity, and opportunity locally and globally.
Philanthropy reached a historic milestone with the close of the Campaign for Every Child, which raised an extraordinary $722 million, far exceeding its original $500 million goal. In the most recent fiscal year, the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago Foundation surpassed every annual target, a testament to the generosity and shared purpose of our donor community. These resources are transforming care, accelerating discovery, expanding access, and strengthening our ability to meet children’s needs today and for generations to come.
Today, 40% of children with genetic and rare diseases will never receive a diagnosis, and 95% have no treatment options. That is a threshold we cannot accept. This year, visionary philanthropy helped Lurie Children’s take a bold step toward changing what’s possible for families navigating the diagnostic and therapeutic odyssey of rare disease. Don and Anne Edwards made a $11 million investment to launch the Edwards Family Division of Genetics and Rare Diseases, accelerating a future where breakthroughs are tested, refined, and shared far beyond Chicagoland. Their gift is already igniting critical capabilities: bringing long-read sequencing in-house to reduce diagnostic waits from three months to under two weeks; expanding our clinical genetics team from two to ten physicians to cut appointment wait times from two years to under six months; and establishing Illinois’ first pediatric genetics training program to address a profound workforce gap.
For the periods ending August 31, 2025 ($ in millions)
| 2025 | 2024 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patient Care Revenue, Net | $ | 1,593.1 | $ | 1,454.3 |
| Grants, Gifts, and Endowment Income | 180.9 | 174.0 | ||
| Other Revenue | 109.2 | 103.0 | ||
| Total Operating Revenue | $ | 1,883.2 | $ | 1,731.3 |
| Salaries and Benefits | $ | 1,132.1 | $ | 1,104.5 |
| Supplies, Services, Other | 563.3 | 571.2 | ||
| Depreciation and Amortization | 90.8 | 83.4 | ||
| Interest and Amortization of Financing Costs | 16.2 | 17.0 | ||
| Total Operating Expenses | $ | 1,802.4 | $ | 1,776.1 |
| Income (Loss) from Operations | $ | 80.8 | $ | (44.8) |
| Other Income, Net | 105.6 | 166.3 | ||
| Excess of Revenue over Expense | $ | 186.4 | $ | 121.5 |
Assets |
2025 | 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current Assets | $ | 584.0 | $ | 626.0 |
| Investments | 2,107.4 | 1,971.5 | ||
| Property and Other Assets | 1,213.7 | 1,201.9 | ||
| Total Assets | $ | 3,905.1 | $ | 3,799.4 |
Liabilities and Net Assets |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current Liabilities | $ | 470.3 | $ | 592.4 |
| Long-Term Debt and Other Liabilities | 581.4 | 587.8 | ||
| Net Assets | 2,853.4 | 2,619.2 | ||
| Total Liabilities and Net Assets | $ | 3,905.1 | $ | 3,799.4 |
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