NIH Funding Secured: FY 2026 Appropriations Act Ends Shutdown and Advances Biomedical Research
After months of negotiation and several partial and full government shutdowns, on Feb. 3, Congress passed and President Trump signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 7148). The bill included $48.7 billion in funding for the NIH and limited the use of multi-year funding and protected against blanket caps on facilities and administrative costs (F&A)—two grants policy provisions that RSNA was proud to support leading up to the bill’s final passage.
The formal appropriations process for FY 2026 began in May 2025, when the President submitted his budget request to Congress, initiating federal funding negotiations. For much of the past 10 months, NIH operated under significant funding uncertainty, driven by large-scale cuts proposed by the Trump Administration and congressional gridlock that resulted in several lapses in appropriations.
Looking ahead, RSNA will continue working with our partners in biomedical research advocacy in FY 2027 by participating in the Future of Health: Medical Imaging Research Hill Day, hosted On March 24 by the Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research in Washington, D.C. The event brings together imaging societies, including RSNA, for a unified day of education and advocacy on Capitol Hill. Representatives from RSNA will participate in coordinated congressional meetings to deliver a strategic, unified message highlighting the critical importance of sustained federal funding for medical imaging research. Watch RSNA’s social media for updates and photos from this important initiative.
Learn more about our ongoing efforts in advocating for medical imaging research.
Radiology Workforce and AI—Policies Impacting Practice
In recent months, federal policymakers have intensified their focus on workforce issues, particularly as it relates to AI and its impact across all sectors of our economy.
Among a flurry of federal actions over the past the several months, in November the Trump Administration launched the Genesis Mission through Executive Order (EO) which primarily focuses on establishing a shared scientific database for AI development. Crucially, however, the EO also directs federal agencies to establish robust training for the scientific workforce, ensuring that individuals can confidently and effectively integrate AI into their daily workflows. In January, the U.S. Department of Energy spearheaded these efforts to expand AI skill training, releasing the Request for Information (RFI), Mobilizing Talent for the Genesis Mission and Developing an American Workforce to Advance Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Science and Engineering. The RFI aims to collect feedback from universities, industry, philanthropic groups and research institutions to help shape the Administration’s strategy for training researchers in AI as part of the Genesis Mission. Although these initiatives do not target the health care workforce specifically, they reflect a broader policy interest in how the growing adoption of AI will affect the nation’s workforce across all sectors.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) AI Strategy primarily focuses on developing the OneHHS Commons to test and validate various AI tools within HHS. However, pillar three of the strategy—Promote Workforce Development and Burden Reduction for Efficiency—specifically calls out the importance of utilizing public-private partnerships to train employees on how to use AI, provide secure, role-based tools and integrate support systems for responsible adoption. RSNA is prepared to assist HHS as it implements this directive and seeks to identify the best strategies for training the medical workforce in AI.
As robust initiatives emerge from the Executive Branch, Congress matched this momentum in early 2026—hosting several hearings on the best methods to upskill the American workforce on AI. In the hearings, witnesses referred to radiology as a model for how sectors across the economy can successfully integrate AI into their workflows. These hearings reflect Congress’s recognition of the importance of establishing a strong infrastructure to effectively train every sector of the workforce and more broadly, the role radiology plays in integrating AI into workflows and workplaces.
Although Congress has not held any hearings directly related to the training of the medical workforce on AI, several lawmakers have pursued this initiative on their own. Indeed, in November 2025, Congresswoman Nanette Barragán (D-CA) introduced the Healthcare Education in AI Literacy Act (HEAL A.I.) which would establish a grant program in HHS to help train the medical workforce on AI. Rep. Barragán’s HEAL A.I. Act is just one part of the growing congressional momentum to prioritize AI workforce training, as reflected in more comprehensive proposals like the AI Workforce PREPARE Act and the Workforce of the Future Act of 2025 which focus on strategies to upskill all sectors of our workforce.
The joint pursuit from the Executive and Legislative Branches for federal AI workforce training legislation sets a decisive tone for the year and paves the way for sector-specific frameworks impacting medical AI training.
