Share this article and save a life!
We just got paid to find heart disease hiding in plain sight.
Bunkerhill Health secured both FDA clearance AND CMS reimbursement for AI that analyzes coronary artery and aortic valve calcium on routine chest CT scans, effective April 1, 2026.
Think about this: millions of chest CTs are performed every year for other reasons. Each one contains valuable cardiac information we’ve been ignoring.
Until now.
💡 The breakthrough isn’t the technology, it’s the payment model.
CMS created an OPPS billing pathway specifically for this opportunistic screening. For the first time, hospitals can get reimbursed for using AI to extract additional diagnostic value from scans already being performed.
This changes everything about preventive cardiology economics.
Every chest CT for pneumonia, lung nodules, or trauma now becomes a cardiac risk assessment tool. No extra radiation. No extra appointment. No extra scan time.
Just AI analyzing data that was already there.
The competitive pricing pressures are already starting. When one technology gets reimbursement, others rush in. Expect rapid innovation in opportunistic screening across all imaging modalities.
Here’s what healthcare leaders should ask: What other hidden diagnostic value sits dormant in our imaging archives? What else could AI find if we had the right payment incentives?
Because this isn’t just about calcium scoring.
It’s about recognizing that every medical image contains more information than we initially sought. And now, finally, we have a business model to unlock it.
The future of radiology isn’t more scans. It’s getting more value from the scans we already do.
♻️ Repost if opportunistic screening should become standard care
👉 Follow me, Jonathan Govette, for daily, real-time updates on healthcare technology and business news. LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathangovette/
Share this article and save a life!
Author:
CEO/Co-Founder @ Oatmeal Health | AI Lung Cancer Screening | Almost Became a Doctor | Engineer | Follow to Share What I’ve Learned Along the Way
I help patients get the care they need earlier, preventing late-stage cancer.
That’s been the throughline across three companies and almost 20 years in healthcare. At ReferralMD, we fixed broken referral networks so patients didn’t fall through the cracks. At Oatmeal Health, it’s lung cancer: building the diagnostic and screening infrastructure so the 85% of cases caught too late get caught early instead.
Today as CEO of Oatmeal Health, I lead a team embedding AI into radiology workflows to turn routine lung CT scans into reimbursable cancer risk assessments. We partner with FQHCs to reach underserved communities, and with health systems and payers to make early detection economically sustainable. Think HeartFlow or Cleerly, but for lungs.
Between companies, I advised at Techstars and Plug and Play, mentoring founders building in digital health. That experience shaped how I think about what separates companies that ship from companies that stall: distribution, reimbursement, and clinical trust, not just technology.
I’m a CancerX alumnus, a 3x healthcare founder, and someone who believes the biggest problems in cancer aren’t scientific. They’re operational.
We’re hiring mission-driven builders at Oatmeal Health. If you want to work on something that matters, reach out.
When I’m not working, I’m traveling, mentoring, and keeping up with one very energetic husky. 🐾
Substack – The Oatmeal Bite:
Millions of patients get less care because of who they are, where they live, or how they look. I’m fighting to change that. CEO @OatmealHealth, a startup built for the underserved. The Oatmeal Bite: intel for clinicians, investors, and advocates.
Jonathan Govette
CEO of Oatmeal Health
Substack:
https://oatmealhealthjonathangovette.substack.com/
