It looks like the annual Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) meeting will stay in Chicago for the foreseeable future.
The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority—the owner of McCormick Place Convention Center where RSNA has been held since 1975—announced an extension of their agreement to host the annual event. Under the new terms, the RSNA conference will remain in Chicago—and McCormick Place—until 2032, extending the most recent contract another four years.
Crane’s Chicago Business was the first to report the news.
Founded in 1915 by a small group of radiologists calling themselves the “American Roentgen Ray Society,” the world’s largest gathering of all things healthcare imaging has been held in Chicago every year since, with only three exceptions: Atlanta in ’79, Dallas in ’80 and Washington, D.C., in ’84.
After toying with the idea of moving the conference to Orlando in 1998, RSNA has since made a firm commitment to Chicago, bringing an economic boon of $115 million to the city last year alone.
Under terms of the extension, RSNA has reaffirmed its intent to change the week of the annual meeting, which has been historically linked to Thanksgiving weekend. This year the conference will take place on Dec. 1-5, and it is expected to take place the first week of December until 2027, when it will occur the week before Thanksgiving. The meeting is expected to alternate between the two weeks after 2027.
Historically, the RSNA conference was held Thanksgiving weekend because downtown Chicago was a popular Christmas shopping destination.
In 2023, the RSNA welcomed more than 40,000 registrants from across the globe. That number is expected to increase over the next few years.
Chad is an award-winning writer and editor with over 15 years of experience working in media. He has a decade-long professional background in healthcare, working as a writer and in public relations.