On July 14, 2026, two members of Congress from opposite parties did something the radiology AI industry has been waiting years for someone to do: they wrote a direct line-item appropriation for a specific category of FDA-cleared imaging software.
Not a research grant. Not a pilot buried in a continuing resolution. Not another CMS rulemaking cycle. A named bill with a named funding amount, directing a named federal agency to lease a named category of technology and deploy it for a named patient population.
H.R. 9666, the AIR CARE for Vets Act - Advanced Imaging for Respiratory Care, Assessment, and Research Excellence for Veterans - authorizes $5 million per year for fiscal years 2027 through 2031, a total of $25 million, for the Department of Veterans Affairs to run a five-year pilot using FDA-cleared four-dimensional functional lung imaging software at VA medical facilities.
The bill's sponsors are Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) and Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH), both members of the House Commit…
