El Paso-Juarez non-profit provides funding to Borderland businesses for PPE, medical device manufacturing

EL PASO, Texas -- BIO El Paso-Juarez, a non-profit created by the Medical Center of the Americas, is helping 17 El Paso businesses ramp up their production of personal protective equipment and medical devices.

The non-profit said it's using $400,000 of federal CARES Act funding granted by the city mostly to give manufactures training they need to be certified in medical device production.

"The medical device base is highly regulated by the FDA so there are a lot of specific training that needs to go into place," said Jackie Butler, director of BIO El Paso-Juarez.

According to Butler, training can typically cost $2,000 per person.

With many companies adapting to Covid-19, some are venturing into the medical device supply chain with no prior experience, which is why the non-profit is also providing consulting services.

“We wanted to find a way to support those companies to make sure that their transitions aren’t temporary and that they’re able to make a successful long term investment in to the medical device base,” Butler said.

The program will end with a virtual trade show showcasing the companies that participated in the program in December.

Although the program is closed off to other business, business owners can still reach out to BIO El Paso-Juarez for more resources. For more information, click here.