By Tim Mastro

NEWARK – U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester visited the Newark site of Hologic, a medical technology manufacturer, to discuss supply chain issues, such as the semiconductor chip shortage, impacting the production of critical medical technology on Friday.

Hologic, a global medical technology innovator primarily focused on improving women’s health, is experiencing issues in accessing enough chips to produce and maintain mammography systems. Blunt Rochester was joined by Jennifer Meade, Hologic Division President of Breast & Skeletal Health, and Hologic’s Delaware site leadership.

“The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated already existing issues with our supply chains,” said Rep. Blunt Rochester. “Those disruptions impacted industries all over the country, including the healthcare sector. Hologic, which manufactures top-notch mammography machines, is still unable to access semiconductor chips to run its machines. That is detrimental for women’s health services. That’s exactly why we needed to invest in the manufacturing of chips here in the U.S. so that we can rely on our American ingenuity and innovation to help Americans access the health services they need. I was proud to work alongside my colleagues in the House to get the CHIPS and Science Act passed into law last month that allocated over $50 billion to the domestic manufacturing of chips. Together, we’re on our way to fix our supply chains and bring good-paying, manufacturing jobs back to the United States so that businesses like Hologic can continue their life-saving work.”

Rep. Blunt Rochester sent a letter to in February to Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra expressing concern over the impact the semiconductor chip shortage is having on the medical technology industry. In July, Rep. Blunt Rochester voted to pass the CHIPS and Science Act that includes $52 million in funding for semiconductor chip incentives. President Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act into law on Aug. 9.