MediClear wins Rep. Diana Harshbarger’s 2025 Congressional App Challenge in Tennessee’s First District.
Rep. Diana Harshbarger has named Graham Mefford of University School as the winner of the 2025 Congressional App Challenge in Tennessee’s First District. Their app MediClear is an intelligent health companion that makes medical information simple, secure, and human.
When asked what inspired the creation of MediClear, Graham Mefford said, “I grew up in Southern Appalachia, a region known for its beauty but also for its uneven access to healthcare. Many people in my community live miles from the nearest hospital, struggle to find consistent primary care, and rarely receive the screenings that could prevent serious illness. According to the Appalachian Regional Commission, heart disease mortality in this region is nearly 30 percent higher than the national average, and adults are about 20 percent less likely to have regular checkups or preventive visits. Behind these numbers is a deeper issue: people often do not understand their own health information until it is too late.
‘This became personal for me. Two of my family members passed away prematurely because they did not recognize early warning signs of preventable conditions. Their test results existed, but the meaning behind the numbers was never explained. They were not careless; they were uninformed. Watching this happen made me realize that information without understanding cannot save lives. The healthcare system is filled with data, but most of it is written in a language many people cannot read.
‘That realization became the foundation for MediClear. I wanted to create a tool that could help people interpret their own medical data in a way that felt simple, accurate, and personal. MediClear takes the complexity of lab reports, vitals, and clinical notes and turns it into clarity. The app uses an interactive dashboard to display key metrics in real time, a document scanner to interpret medical files, and an AI assistant that explains results in clear, everyday language.
‘This project is deeply connected to where I come from and the people I have lost. It represents a commitment to helping others see what they could not before. MediClear is more than a healthcare app; it is a way to give understanding, control, and hope back to those who need it most.”
The 2025 Congressional App Challenge marked another record-setting year for the program. A total of 394 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives hosted App Challenges in their congressional districts, the highest level of participation in the program’s history. More than 13,800 students from across the country participated, submitting over 4,600 original apps focused on real-world challenges ranging from health and accessibility to education, sustainability, and civic engagement.
The Congressional App Challenge is an official initiative of the U.S. House of Representatives that encourages middle school and high school students to learn to code, explore computer science, and build practical technology solutions for their communities. Each participating Member of Congress selects a winning app from their district, and winning teams are invited to showcase their projects to Members of Congress, staff, and industry leaders at the annual #HouseOfCode celebration on Capitol Hill.
The Challenge is proudly bipartisan and reflects a shared commitment to expanding access to STEM education and preparing the next generation of American innovators for the future workforce. The program is a public-private partnership made possible through funding from the Broadcom Foundation, AWS, Infosys Foundation USA, theCoderSchool, Apple, and others.
The 2026 Congressional App Challenge will launch in May, and eligible students can pre-register for the competition now.