Using Semicolons in Lists
So right after telling you that semicolons shouldn’t be used like commas, we should discuss one situation where the semicolon does function more like a comma. However, this is a very particular situation, so you’ll want to pay close attention.
You should use semicolons when you are separating items in a list that already contain commas. Here is an example:
At the Sigma Nursing Conference, I met Juan Pablo from Dallas, Texas; Rayvon from Bend, Oregon; and Sylvia from Bangor, Maine.
Because the items in the series contain commas themselves, it would be confusing to add more commas to the situation. In this particular instance, the semicolon separates the items in a series.