Michelle Bachmann (R) MN takes liberty with the truth while talking with The Fox News Channels Sean Hannity. While spinning the public discourse surrounding health reform, Bahmann told Hannity that Minnesota was known for innovation and that "a gentleman invented the pacemaker in his garage." which doesn't exactly jive with reality.
Canadian, John Hopps invented the first cardiac pacemaker. While experimenting with radio frequency heating to restore body temperature, Hopps made an unexpected discovery: if a heart stopped beating due to cooling, it could be started again by artificial stimulation using mechanical or electric means. This lead to Hopps' invention of the world's first cardiac pacemaker in 1950.
Wilson Greatbatch invented a newly-designed cardiac pacemaker and a corrosion-free lithium battery to power it Patent Number(s) 3,057,356 - Born in Buffalo, New York, Greatbatch attended Cornell University and graduated with a B.E.E. in electrical engineering in 1950. Improvements had been made upon the two men's earlier work by creating the Chardack-Greatbatch pacemaker in 1960.
It used Mallory mercuric oxide-zinc cells for its energy source, then coupled to electrodes placed into the myocardium of the patient's heart. It was this patented innovation that led to the Medtronic company of Minneapolis commencing manufacture and further development of cardiac pacemakers, but by no stretch of the imagination was it the inventor of the pacemaker.
Well.....unless you're Rep. Michelle Bachmann. Then there is no telling how far the imagination can stretch. Historical reports to confirm that Medtronic got it's start in a garage in northeast Minneapolis as a repair service specializing in medical equipment.
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