• • Session Ends - Big Ticket Items Still In Play
• • Governor's Clock Ticking on Workforce and Suicide Prevention Bills
• • SCHA Testifies Before Senate Select Subcommittee on Behalf of Improvements to CON
• • 3M Subcommittee Continues Work on Contentious Bill to Increase Access to Opioid Treatment Programs
• • In Other News
• • Chamber Action
• • Intros of Interest
• • 2021 SCHA Legislative Wrap-Up

The 124th session of the SC General Assembly came to an unusually quiet close at 5pm yesterday. (No chaos on the floor trying to beat the 5 o'clock deadline; in fact, both the House and Senate adjourned just before 3 pm.) Under the Sine Die Resolution, the General Assembly remains in recess subject to the call of the President of the Senate for the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives at which time they may consider specific legislation including the General Appropriations Bill and appropriation or authorization legislation concerning COVID-19 relief funding, conference committees reports and gubernatorial vetoes. The resolution does provide for their return in June to work on the budget. The state fiscal year begins July 1, and they must pass their version of the budget to the Governor in time to allow for veto overrides. Legislation currently pending in either body still has the chance for passage next year, beginning, January 11, 2022, specifically. Subcommittees may continue to work on legislation not referenced in the Sine Die Resolution during the interim such as the subcommittee on S.2, DHEC restructuring, but will not meet in official capacity.

In preparation for round 2 of budget negotiations, Rep. Murrell Smith and Sen. Hugh Leatherman introduced joint resolutions on Thursday to authorize the expenditure of federal funds disbursed to the state in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, H.4408 (G.M. Smith) and S.822 (Leatherman). With revised BEA estimates and influx of federal stimulus dollars, the Healthcare Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee has already announced the start of round two of deliberations on H. 4100, the 2021-22 appropriations bill, to begin Monday, May 24 at 10:30 am. Reps. Herbkersman (Chair), Rutherford, Hosey, Clyburn and Crawford will review updated budget and proviso requests from members as well as those from the Departments of: Health and Human Services, Mental Health, Health and Environmental Control, and Social Services. The meeting will be streamed live at https://scstatehouse.gov/. 

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The legislative clock is again ticking with the focus on the Governor who has five days to act on bills ratified by the House and Senate. Two priority issues that we advocated on behalf of were ratified Thursday: temporary licensure for graduate nurses, S.455 (Davis), that would allow a graduate of an accredited nursing program to begin working in a healthcare setting immediately upon graduation under this new licensure category while waiting to take the NCLEX and receive their results and S. 231 (Shealy), the Student Identification Card Suicide Prevention Act that requires public, private and charter schools and colleges that issue student identification cards to print the telephone number for nationals and local suicide prevention resources on either side of the card. The Governor must either sign or veto the bills or, if he takes no action, they automatically become law. 

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Wednesday morning, the Senate Medical Affairs select subcommittee met to take up two competing Certificate of Need competing proposals, S.290 (Climer), full CON repeal, and S.370 (Talley), CON reform. Sen. Scott Talley's (Greenville, Spartanburg) legislation is based on a reform package developed by the SCHA Board and recently reaffirmed their support. No action was taken. 

During this much anticipated hearing, Chairman Tom Davis (Beaufort, Jasper) called on several witnesses, alternating between advocates for repeal and supporters of reform including Sen. Wes Climer (York) himself who testified then left without hearing from any other presenters. Our own President and CEO, Thornton Kirby, offered a few introductory remarks to counter misleading statements made by advocates for repeal. Hospital representatives, Donna Isgett, President and CEO at McLeod Health and Sue Shugart, CEO of KershawHealth, then testified highlighting the importance of the CON program in preserving access to care for low-income individuals and rural communities. Comments were well received by the subcommittee and senators asked several follow-up questions relating to these themes and showed an interest in learning more. SCHA's letter to the subcommittee expands upon the messages we delivered.

Although this year's legislative session has ended, financial backing from both in-state and out-of-state CON repeal proponents have made it clear that the CON issue is not going away. The SCHA Board's Executive Committee has proposed to convene a special working group of CEOs to review our reform proposal with an eye toward making it more attractive to lawmakers who are advocating strongly for repeal. 

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Earlier this session, a bill aimed to increase access to opioid treatment programs, H.3365 (Fry), had advanced to the full 3M Committee but numerous questions and uncertainties brought forward by members sent the bill back to subcommittee for additional work and allow stakeholders to work on compromise language. On Wednesday, the 3M Health and Environmental Affairs Subcommittee continued receiving testimony including proponents and opponents from the medical community. The purpose of this bill is to increase access to methadone or other USDA-approved narcotic treatment medication for treating opioid use disorders by allowing practitioners licensed by the State Board of Medical Examiners or their agent(s) to dispense and administer the medication under the practitioner's supervision. It also would allow a licensed practitioner to dispense a drug or device for a patient of a narcotic treatment program (NTP) if the drug is properly labeled. This bill is one of the House Opioid Abuse Prevention Study Committee recommendations and is also supported by the Department Drugs, Alcohol and Other Substance Abuse Services (DAODAS). No action was taken.

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• Launch of 'Embrace Recovery' Campaign at the Statehouse a Success. On the north steps of the Statehouse Thursday, Governor Henry McMaster and DAODAS Director Sara Goldsby kicked off a new initiative to embrace recovery in our state, Embrace Recovery SC. This new website provides tools to help those with substance use disorders live and embrace recovery. It's designed for everyone in South Carolina, not just those who are overcoming a substance use disorder. Advocates from across the state including hospital physicians, law enforcement, individuals in recovery and their support networks attended the launch to demonstrate their support and enthusiasm for this resource. Be sure to check out EmbraceRecoverySC.com and social media outlets to help promote the resource and learn how you can stop the stigma surrounding recovery. 

The Senate approved the gubernatorial appointment of Crystal A. Maxwell from the 5th Congressional District to the South Carolina Mental Health Commission on Tuesday. This term commences July 31, 2018 and expires July 31, 2023. The Mental Health Commission is the governing body of the SC Department of Mental Health and has jurisdiction over the state's public mental health system. Its seven members are appointed for five-year terms by the governor with advice and consent of the Senate.

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S.508 (Shealy) - to allow a parent or legal guardian of a medical eligible child to request and revoke a Do Not Resuscitate order for emergency services for children - House introduced referred to House 3M Committee

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• *S.803 (Massey) a Resolution to declare that the Senate declines to consent to an extension or renewal of the current state of emergency or the issuance of any new COVID-19-related state of emergency without the express consent of the General Assembly - Senate Introduced, placed on calendar without reference, 5/12/21 Senate Adopted 
• S.811 (Kimbrell) a bill to enact the "Medical Ethics and Diversity Act" - Senate introduced and referred to Medical Affairs Committee
• *S.814 (Leatherman) a resolution to recognize certified registered nurse anesthetists and their significant contributions to providing quality health care to the public - Senate Introduced and Adopted
• S.822 (Leatherman) a joint resolution to authorize the expenditure of federal funds disbursed to the state in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and to specify the manner in which they may be expended - Senate Introduced and read first time, Senate Referred to Committee on Finance
• *S.824 (Gambrell) a Senate resolution to designate the week of May 16-22 as Emergency Medical Services Week in SC and to and to encourage the community to observe this week with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities - Senate Introduced and adopted
• *H.4382 (W. Cox) a House resolution to designate the week of May 16-22 as Emergency Medical Services Week in SC and to and to encourage the community to observe this week with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities - House Introduced and adopted
• H.4388 (Jones) a Joint Resolution to provide parental choice for mask wearing in schools, among other provisions, until July 1, 2022 - House Introduced and read first time, Referred to Committee on Education and Public Works
• H.4389 (Herbkersman) a bill to establish the Healthcare Professional Loan Forgiveness Program - House Introduced and read first time, Referred to Committee on Ways and Means
• H.4391 (Fry) a bill to prohibit businesses, government entities, school districts and others from requiring proof of vaccination for COVID-19 - House Introduced and read first time, Referred to Committee on Judiciary
• H.4394 (Erickson) a bill to enact the South Carolina Midwife Practice Act - House Introduced and read first time Referred to Committee on Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs
• H.4405 (J. Moore) a bill to provide for a mental health evaluation before a bond hearing after the arrest of a person from a mental health facility or institution - House Introduced and read first time, Referred to Committee on Judiciary
• H.4408 (G.M. Smith) a Joint Resolution to authorize the expenditure of federal funds disbursed to the state in the American Rescue Plan and to specify the manner in which the funds may be expended - House Introduced and read first time, Referred to Committee on Ways and Means 

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The SCHA legislative year-end wrap up will be published in July, after the FY 2021-22 Appropriations bill is approved and vetoes are addressed. If you have questions about any legislation in the meantime, please feel free to reach out to the Advocacy Team.

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