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RadNet to Buy ONRAD, Faster Mammo Workup, and Helium Criticality
October 29, 2026
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Together with
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“AI has arrived just in time. One day we’ll look back at this and say that the existential need that imaging, and ultimately healthcare, had was only going to be solved by embracing technology and moving into a completely different way of delivering healthcare.”
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Howard Berger, MD, president and CEO of RadNet.
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If you’re walking through the South Hall at RSNA 2026 and you see a giant flamingo overhead, don’t be alarmed. It’s just part of the exhibit booth at Mach7 Technologies, which is highlighting its Flamingo platform of modular solutions for medical image access and exchange. I talked to CEO Teri Thomas about Flamingo and everything else going on at Mach7 in this edition of The Imaging Wire Show.
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Consolidation in the teleradiology market picked up speed this week as outpatient imaging provider RadNet announced an agreement to buy ONRAD for up to $560M. The acquisition is big news in its own right, but it also shows how radiology’s workforce challenges are driving a restructuring of the imaging services segment.
RadNet announced on October 26 that it had agreed to acquire ONRAD from its private equity owner Housatonic Partners for $350M in cash and 5M shares, with an earnout clause worth up to $210M. The deal is expected to close in early 2027.
- ONRAD has over 130 radiologists under contract who read imaging exams via teleradiology for more than 225 hospitals in 26 states. The company is expected to add $190M to $200M in annual revenue to RadNet.
ONRAD is based in Phoenix and itself has grown through acquisition in recent years, such as its purchase of Direct Radiology from Philips in late 2024.
- ONRAD already had a relationship with RadNet, as it was the first customer for DeepHealth OS, the AI operating system developed by RadNet’s DeepHealth subsidiary.
In fact, it was that relationship that ultimately led to this week’s acquisition announcement. In an interview with The Imaging Wire, RadNet President and CEO Howard Berger, MD, said the company’s work with ONRAD gave it greater exposure to the rising volume and staffing challenges hospitals are facing.
- The radiologist shortage has been slowing down reporting times for hospital-based radiologists and even delaying patient diagnoses, prompting facilities to turn to teleradiology for help.
RadNet is no stranger to teleradiology, using it extensively within its own network of outpatient imaging centers, Berger said.
- But with the ONRAD acquisition, RadNet will offer teleradiology to external customers, mainly hospitals that need extra interpretation capacity.
That will bring RadNet into more direct competition with radiology’s 800-pound gorilla, Radiology Partners.
- RP historically has focused on rolling up radiology groups rather than running outpatient imaging centers, but it does operate the vRad teleradiology business that competes directly with ONRAD, and in August RP announced an acquisition of international teleradiology provider Everlight.
RP also has its own dedicated AI subsidiary, Mosaic Clinical Technologies, that markets AI algorithms that compete with those from RadNet’s DeepHealth.
- In fact, it’s the AI angle that makes all of these recently announced acquisitions so intriguing.
While hospitals debate whether and how to adopt AI, imaging services providers have apparently decided to develop their own AI, offer it through their own provider network, and then build additional revenues through third-party sales.
- It’s a philosophy that also seems to be driving Harrison.ai’s partnership with teleradiology provider Frontier Radiology (albeit on a far smaller scale).
The Takeaway
RadNet’s planned acquisition of ONRAD reflects two separate but related trends in radiology – the ongoing workforce crisis and growing adoption of AI to try to solve it. The consolidation suggests that a broad restructuring of the U.S. radiology market is occurring that combines traditional imaging services with teleradiology, with a strong helping of AI to speed things along.
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Heading to RSNA? Let’s Talk Operational Transformation
Join Fujifilm at Booth #4100 at RSNA 2026 to explore Synapse Worklist Orchestrator (SWO), in partnership with RealTime Medical. Discover how SWO’s Radiology Cockpit and Operations Platform takes practices beyond workflow orchestration to operational transformation, improving throughput, turnaround times, and workload equity.
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Check out Mosaic Reporting at RSNA
Mosaic Reporting is available to radiology practices, hospitals, and health systems. It runs alongside an organization’s existing PACS, so the image archive and viewer stay in place. Mosaic Reporting can be seen live at RSNA 2026: booth #5304 in the South Hall AI Showcase or through a private demo scheduled here.
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The Right Prior, The Right Chart
Medicom’s platform improves radiology workflow by finding outside imaging, matching it to the correct patient record, and delivering it into the chart automatically. Learn how Medicom can benefit you by visiting them at RSNA 2026, Booths #4165 and #4360.
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- Sonographers Sub In for Biopsies: As radiologists’ workload continues to grow, a new JACR study evaluates a program that reduced their biopsy burden by offloading thyroid biopsies to specially trained sonographers. Results from 14.1k fine-needle aspiration biopsies showed that sonographers had lower rates of non-diagnostic biopsies (21% vs. 34%). After three years post-training, that percentage dropped even further to 8.6%. Sonographer-performed biopsies also had higher malignancy yields and lower nondiagnostic rates than biopsies performed by other trained clinicians.
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Your RSNA Starts Here
Whether you’re visiting RSNA 2026 to solve a specific challenge or to explore what’s possible, Sectra’s team will be there for you. Book a demo to discover how their enterprise imaging SaaS solutions – including radiology reporting – can meet your imaging needs.
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Radiology Automation Simplified
CARPL is an enterprise-grade radiology AI validation and deployment platform with 250+ AI applications across 85+ AI vendors that empowers healthcare providers to access, assess, and securely integrate imaging AI in their practice. Book a demo today.
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A Next-Generation Oncology Ecosystem
Quibim has launched their next-generation oncology ecosystem platform. Find out how QP-Prostate provides a comprehensive, end-to-end management workflow for prostate cancer care, supporting clinicians from the earliest stages of image acquisition through diagnosis, patient management, and follow-up.
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- At the Center of Care at RSNA 2026: Imaging is at the center of countless clinical decisions. At RSNA 2026, explore how Intelerad is helping healthcare organizations connect imaging across the enterprise to support more efficient workflows, greater capacity, and better clinical decision-making. Schedule a meeting today.
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- Experience the Platform For The Future at RSNA: Visage is not only leading imaging’s move to the cloud, they’ve defined it. Book at priority demo with them at RSNA 2026 or visit Booth #4329 to experience the platform for the future – powered by speed.
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- Connectivity Solutions at RSNA 2026: Visit Altamont Software at RSNA 2026 to learn more about their full portfolio of connectivity solutions, from Passport SR for capturing DICOM Structured Report measurements to eForms for eliminating paper-based workflow. Book a meeting today or stop by at Booth #7808.
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