COLUMBIA, S.C. — A proposal to merge state health agencies may resurface next month.
The bill, which aimed to combine six separate agencies into a new Executive Office of Health and Policy, was derailed during the final minutes of the legislative session.
Governor Henry McMaster voiced support for the legislation this week and called on lawmakers to prioritize its passage.
“They got to get this done. However we can get the bill up, by whatever means necessary, and get the job done, I’m for,” said McMaster. "We have way too many things happening to our people that could be prevented if we get organized and get streamlined.”
The proposed merger, headed by a governor-appointed secretary, seeks to address issues highlighted in a report by the Boston Consulting Group. The report identified South Carolina as having one of the most fragmented health and human services structures in the country.
Advocates for the bill, such as Kimberly Tissot from Able South Carolina, underscored the impact of inefficiencies on residents
“People are being sent out of state for services being forced to live out of state because of services but South Carolina is paying for it,” said Tissot. “The return on investment is horrifying, but these are people's lives. And this is not a small number of people. This is over a million people are impacted by these agencies.”
The House Freedom Caucus has been against the legislation from the start. They say it would create a “health czar.” Davis tells News 19 this is misleading.
"We're failing those populations right now. We have a broken, fractured system that is wasting taxpayer dollars and not delivering services in an efficient way. That's what this bill is about,” said Davis.
Davis did not comment on how the bill got here but is instead focusing on moving forward.
“It doesn't do any good to point fingers, or to cast aspersions or to assign blame, the important thing is for us to go ahead and reconcile the two versions of the bill and get it passed,” said Davis.
To revive the legislation, lawmakers would need to amend the sine die resolution, which outlines agenda items for the off-season. This process requires a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate.
“I don't know how that vote turns out. I would hope that my colleagues in the Senate, I would hope that my counterparts over in the house recognize how important this is,” said Davis.
The bill has received overwhelming bipartisan support. It passed in the Senate by a vote of 44-1 and passed the House by a 98-15 vote.
If lawmakers don't amend the sine die resolution in June, the bill would have to be reintroduced again in January.
The bill is connected to a previous law signed by Governor McMaster, splitting the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) into two new agencies, effective July 1. One agency will oversee public health, while the other will handle environmental services.