PLANTATION, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 23, 2026--
Akumin Inc. (“Akumin” or the “Company”), a leading provider of diagnostic imaging and oncology solutions, recently welcomed referring providers, healthcare partners, community guests and Team Members to an Open House and ribbon-cutting celebration at its newly renovated Plantation imaging center, held in collaboration with United Imaging.
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The event marked the unveiling of the center’s refreshed space, highlighting Akumin’s continued investment in creating elevated outpatient imaging environments designed to enhance the patient experience.
Attendees had the opportunity to tour the renovated facility, connect with Akumin leadership, Team Members, and United Imaging representatives, and experience firsthand the thoughtful design and advanced imaging environment that support high-quality care and clinical excellence.
“This investment reflects how we are continuing to strengthen access to advanced imaging,” said Henry Howe, Chief Executive Officer of Akumin. “The Plantation center represents our commitment to delivering a more modern, connected care experience, one that combines innovative technology, thoughtful design and the high standard of service our communities expect from Akumin.”
The event featured a ceremonial ribbon cutting, guided facility tours, networking opportunities and curated refreshments, bringing together key stakeholders to commemorate the center’s refreshed environment and future-focused approach to imaging services.
The Plantation center also reflects Akumin’s continued investment in advanced imaging technology through its collaboration with United Imaging, including newly installed MRI and PET/CT systems, with a CT system planned for installation in the near future. Akumin’s collaboration with United Imaging reflects a shared commitment to innovation, operational excellence and delivering an exceptional care experience.
“We were honored to be part of this celebration with Akumin,” said David Bradley, Senior Vice President of Imaging Solutions, United Imaging North America. “The Plantation facility reflects a strong vision for combining thoughtful design and a patient-centered approach to care; United Imaging’s technology is a perfect fit for this very advanced, modern facility. We’re thrilled with the feedback we’ve received on our equipment's image quality, ease of use, and patient comfort, as well as on the support our service teams provide locally.”
The newly renovated Plantation center is part of Akumin’s broader commitment to creating imaging environments that support comfort, efficiency and quality at every touchpoint. By continuing to invest in both technology and the care setting itself, Akumin is helping shape a more connected and elevated outpatient experience for patients and providers alike.
About Akumin
Akumin is a leading U.S. provider of advanced imaging and radiation oncology services, committed to excellence in patient care and expanding access to life-saving diagnostics and treatments. Serving millions annually, Akumin operates one of the nation’s largest networks of fixed-site radiology centers and mobile imaging and oncology solutions, including the innovative Akumin AXIS®. Partnering with over 800 hospitals and physician groups, Akumin combines clinical expertise, operational excellence, and advanced technology to broaden access, enhance care standards, and meet community needs. Through innovation and collaboration, Akumin is pioneering the future of patient-centered care. For more information, visit www.akumin.com.
About United Imaging
At United Imaging, we develop and produce advanced medical products, digital healthcare solutions, and intelligent systems that support the entire imaging diagnosis and treatment process. Founded in 2011, United Imaging operates subsidiaries and R&D centers worldwide. Our North American headquarters in Houston includes corporate offices, a manufacturing facility, product showroom, service training center, and service parts distribution center. Guided by our mission of Equal Healthcare for All™, we are committed to expanding access to high-quality medical imaging and driving meaningful progress in healthcare.
Plantation Mayor Nick Sortal (center), flanked by Henry Howe, CEO of Akumin (left), and Jeffrey Bundy, CEO of United Imaging North America (right), during the ribbon cutting ceremony.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's acting attorney general on Thursday signed an order reclassifying state-licensed medical marijuana as a less-dangerous drug, a major policy shift long sought by advocates who said cannabis should never have been treated like heroin by the federal government.
The order signed by Todd Blanche does not legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use under federal law. But it does change the way it's regulated, shifting licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I — reserved for drugs without medical use and with high potential for abuse — to the less strictly regulated Schedule III. It also gives licensed medical marijuana operators a major tax break and eases some barriers to researching cannabis.
The Trump administration also said it was jump-starting the process for reclassifying marijuana more broadly, setting a hearing to begin in late June.
Trump told his administration in December to work as quickly as possible to reclassify marijuana. On Saturday, as the Republican president signed an unrelated executive order about psychedelics, he seemed to express frustration that it was taking so long.
Blanche said Thursday that the Department of Justice was “delivering on President Trump’s promise” to expand Americans’ access to medical treatment options. “This rescheduling action allows for research on the safety and efficacy of this substance, ultimately providing patients with better care and doctors with more reliable information,” he said in a statement.
Blanche's action Iargely legitimizes medical marijuana programs in the 40 states that have adopted them. It sets up an expedited system for state-licensed medical marijuana producers and distributors to register with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
It makes clear that cannabis researchers won't be penalized for obtaining state-licensed marijuana or marijuana-derived products for use in their work, and it grants state-licensed medical marijuana companies a windfall by allowing them, for the first time, to deduct business expenses on their federal taxes.
Any marijuana-derived medicine approved by the Food and Drug Administration is similarly listed in Schedule III, it said.
The order represents a major policy shift for the U.S. government, which has continued its longstanding marijuana prohibition — dating to the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 — even as nearly all the states have approved cannabis use in some form. Two dozen states plus Washington, D.C., have authorized adult recreational use of marijuana, 40 have medical marijuana systems, and eight others allow low-THC cannabis or CBD oil for medical use. Only Idaho and Kansas ban marijuana outright.
The regulation of medical marijuana has come a long way since California became the first state to adopt it in 1996, Blanche wrote.
“Today the vast majority of States maintain comprehensive licensing frameworks governing cultivation, processing, distribution, and dispensing of marijuana for medical purposes,” Blanche wrote. “Taken as a whole, they demonstrate a sustained capacity to achieve the public-interest objectives ... including protecting public health and safety and preventing the diversion of controlled substances into illicit channels.”
The president of the American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp, Michael Bronstein, called it “the most significant federal advancement in cannabis policy in over 50 years."
“This action recognizes what Americans have long known, cannabis is medicine,” he said in a written statement.
The Trump administration’s decision drew derision from marijuana legalization opponent Kevin Sabet, the chief executive of Smart Approaches to Marijuana. Sabet said that while marijuana research is necessary, "there are many ways to increase our knowledge without giving a tax break to Big Weed and sending a confusing message about marijuana’s harms to the American public.”
“With this move, we are now confronted with the most pro-drug administration in our history,” Sabet said in a text message. “Policy is now being dictated by marijuana CEOs, psychedelics investors, and podcasters in active addiction."
Marijuana or marijuana-derived products that are not distributed through a state medical marijuana program will continue to be classified in Schedule I.
Schedule III drugs are defined as having moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence. Some critics of the industry have suggested that legalization in the states has led to stronger and stronger cannabis products, which need to be researched rather than categorized less strictly than before.
The Justice Department under President Joe Biden, a Democrat, had proposed to reclassify marijuana, eliciting nearly 43,000 formal public comments. The DEA was still in the review process when Trump succeeded Biden, and Trump ordered that process to move along as quickly as legally possible.
Blanche's order sidestepped the review process by relying on a provision of federal law that allows the attorney general to determine the appropriate classification for drugs that the U.S. must regulate pursuant to an international treaty.
It was unclear how the order might affect operations in states where licensed recreational marijuana shops also sell to medical patients. In Washington state, which in 2012 became one of the first states to legalize the adult use of marijuana, 302 of 460 licensed stores have endorsements allowing them to sell tax-free cannabis products to registered patients.
Many Republicans oppose loosening marijuana restrictions. More than 20 Republican senators, several of them staunch Trump allies, signed a letter last year urging the president to keep the current standards.
Trump has made his crusade against other drugs, especially fentanyl, a feature of his second term, ordering U.S. military attacks on Venezuelan and other boats the administration insists are ferrying drugs. He signed another executive order declaring fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction.
This story has been corrected to show the name of the 1937 law was spelled Marihuana, not Marijuana.
Johnson reported from Seattle.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks at a news conference at the Justice Department, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
President Donald Trump waves as he departs after an event for NCAA national champions in the State Dining Room of the White House, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump speaks during an event for NCAA national champions in the State Dining Room of the White House, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
FILE - In this Sept. 15, 2015 file photo, marijuana plants with their buds covered in white crystals called trichomes, are a few weeks away from harvest at the Ataraxia medical marijuana cultivation center in Albion, Ill.. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman, File)
