[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6341973,"mediaKeyId","2256214-4e3f6017ccb257545579ee6cfb9f1fdd","parentId",2256214,"title","Senate subcommittee advances S.287 to restrict unapproved vaping products, citing youth use and enforcement gaps","audioSeconds",3688,"startMs",26794,"endMs",3715415,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2256214-4e3f6017ccb257545579ee6cfb9f1fdd&start=26&end=3715","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2256214-4e3f6017ccb257545579ee6cfb9f1fdd/thumbnail_26794.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6341973/South-Carolina/Senate-subcommittee-advances-S287-to-restrict-unapproved-vaping-products-citing-youth-use-and-enforcement-gaps","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6341973-51c78c8e2b57e76a11d59f367c4911fb/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174267&Signature=mtLpiHrLbsU42lYbLYkAo1LnMghDdBZpiry1nsNUTMF3VImFoa2ohiFGuQVF5i12AYo~8bArB4hRFGoFLMrFv1Mk54eRtj4D~NEG-lmheUibBJp7IM7BZmaK9bc39diAPdWV5U3AY0Mu7O94SX7XAHkQAP9JvyddAMpHXEjV~3hIH7rLz9ad6qnY4XeHQ8M4I3I37nw48VvlXkZe243~~OI5OvDAGIzIIB3T7N5jg7pZ1Yt0jwyQGdwub1XUbNv2zSB7S4CeSe0G2Sv1BZA8Gv92lWulv4kig4SmoOCNBh1L8fYvcKGaywD2g7sDsNgShjYy8PSL4-mN7skrgWlgKw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Senate Medical Affairs Committee","date","2025-02-05T00:00:00Z","article","The South Carolina Senate Medical Affairs subcommittee voted to advance S.287, a bill to regulate electronic nicotine delivery systems, after hearing several hours of testimony from law enforcement, educators, local officials and industry representatives.

Senate President Alexander, who sponsored or supported the measure, told the committee the Senate previously passed similar legislation 45-0 in the prior session and urged lawmakers to act swiftly to protect children.

The bill would create a state process to register manufacturers and require documentation that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized a product before it may be sold in South Carolina. Supporters said state action is necessary because some products come through international supply chains and federal enforcement is slow or uneven.

“Last year the Senate passed this legislation, similar legislation…45 to 0,” President Alexander said in opening remarks, urging the subcommittee to take up the measure. Law-enforcement and local officials and school personnel described acute local impacts from disposable flavored devices and other small vaping products that can hide in classrooms and backpacks.

Mark Lyles of the Oconee County sheriff’s office told the committee his deputies and school resource officers face “never ending” problems with vapes brought to schools, including cases that led to ambulance calls and seizures. “We have more calls from our schools with kids hitting it at school…I’m having a bunch of ambulance calls, kids going to the hospital, seizures,” Lyles said.

Dr. Erica R. Hersey, a retired educator, cited state and federal survey figures and described classroom disruptions. “According to the South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services, 47 percent of high schoolers in South Carolina have used a vape product,” she said, adding that the products’ flavors and designs make them attractive and hard to detect.

Mayor Rickman told the committee his community has seen what he described as a roughly 50 percent increase in vaping in local school systems and urged lawmakers to provide tools for enforcement and retail accountability. Michael Fields, director of the South Carolina Convenience and Petroleum Marketers Association, told senators his members support “clarity” and a level playing field for retailers and called the bill a step toward that clarity.

Industry and public-health witnesses differed on whether the proposed registry would be an effective or lawful tool. Andrew Willem, government relations director for the American Heart Association in South Carolina, warned the committee that laws requiring state registries could face immediate legal challenges and argued the bill may be preempted by federal law governing tobacco products. “By voting to advance this legislation, members of this committee would be exposing South Carolina to legal risk,” Willem told senators, citing the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act’s preemption clause.

Perry O’Rourke of the South Carolina Vapor Association told the committee the bill would shrink the legal market to products already approved by large companies and could drive consumers to illicit channels. He said many adults use a range of nonpod and lower-nicotine products as cigarette-cessation aids and warned the registry could reduce adult access to alternatives.

Committee members asked whether the problem is gaps in state law, enforcement challenges, or slow federal action. Several witnesses said enforcement is hampered by unclear federal–state age discrepancies and by the volume of different products in the market; witnesses also said many products are manufactured abroad and lack reliable testing for contents such as THC or fentanyl.

The subcommittee took the bill up out of order to allow Senate President Alexander to participate and, after testimony and questions, a motion was made to advance S.287 to the full committee. The motion passed by voice vote; the transcript records unanimous consent but does not include a roll-call tally.

The full committee will receive S.287 for further consideration, where senators have said they will consider amendments addressing age limits, enforcement authority, and coordination with federal and civil litigation risk.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Senate Medical Affairs Committee -- Senate Medical Affairs Subcommittee 02/05/2025","oneSentenceSummary","The South Carolina Senate Medical Affairs subcommittee voted to advance S.287, a bill to regulate electronic nicotine delivery systems, after hearing testimony from law enforcement, educators, local officials and industry representatives.","taxTitle","Medical Affairs, Standing, Senate, Committees, Legislative, South Carolina","taxId",17644,"location","South Carolina","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6341963,"Committee advances proposed consumer-protection language on kratom and similar products to full committee",467,4889035,5356040,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2256214-4e3f6017ccb257545579ee6cfb9f1fdd&start=4889&end=5356","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2256214-4e3f6017ccb257545579ee6cfb9f1fdd/thumbnail_4889035.jpg","/articles/6341963/South-Carolina/Committee-advances-proposed-consumer-protection-language-on-kratom-and-similar-products-to-full-committee","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6341963-93508d72074e80b7949933f387613f36/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174267&Signature=JMLhcJAR8PkdGmaJajC2PU8AWOqHnaYjKn4kT08RV~xluMyizvU6dFVCp4FneoZ~C-2Cl7AesPD3UhRiS8fFBnuBOnW9ST2RngP4ykYLX2ZkAPS76kiUm7o0Yg1dHJrEbjOCDTF6QrtAsemPg2HkNPVae8b5gaZ60pJTwQVfSQl75Br3ZPhNlDuPrs-mYkIhLA79eRb1rkuIrw0Gz7Jq6X3yVpn~TxDIMBwkjmL~IauQdhbMoKxzU3buyk1vW4PmOKWIonTCvyg0HZ6sD8hN2krbDUxtZBVxZt7xIOJjAX-gjvIdFNdO2vK3Il8zVtE5fXEDdeT5i6n13bEtqT7Z-g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Senate Medical Affairs subcommittee discussed a consumer‑protection proposal under tab 2 that would regulate kratom and similar products, including age limits, allowable chemical components and penalties for adulterated products.

A sponsor’s summary said the draft follows models adopted in about a dozen other states and would make it unlawful to sell the product to anyone under 21, define permissible chemical content and prohibit sale of products adulterated with controlled substances. The measure would not ban the product outright but would create a state standard for composition and sales.

Senators debated details, including whether liability should require knowledge by the retailer that a product was adulterated. One senator asked that staff draft an amendment to add a “knowingly” standard so lawful businesses are not penalized if they purchased a product they reasonably believed to be safe.

Committee members also discussed constitutional limits tied to the state’s alcohol‑age carve‑out and whether a constitutional amendment would be necessary to change the state age from 18 to 21 for statutory enforcement.

Sponsors said the approach would give South Carolina regulators clear standards for what may be sold in the state, including limits tied to federal controlled‑substance schedules and explicit prohibitions on Schedule I–V substances in retail kratom products.

After discussion the subcommittee voted to advance the consumer‑protection draft to the full committee. Senators said they will work with staff on the suggested “knowingly” amendment and related drafting issues before the full‑committee hearing.

","Senators discussed a consumer‑protection proposal under tab 2 that would restrict sale of kratom and similar products to people 21 and codify allowable chemical limits. The subcommittee advanced the measure to the full committee while asking for a technical amendment to add a \"knowingly\" standard for criminal or civil liability.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6341968,"Subcommittee backs S.161, a pain-parity bill to expand access to non-opioid treatments; two amendments adopted",1163,3724680,4888495,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2256214-4e3f6017ccb257545579ee6cfb9f1fdd&start=3724&end=4888","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2256214-4e3f6017ccb257545579ee6cfb9f1fdd/thumbnail_3724680.jpg","/articles/6341968/South-Carolina/Subcommittee-backs-S161-a-pain-parity-bill-to-expand-access-to-non-opioid-treatments-two-amendments-adopted","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6341968-d0b7246ce355b969369942f16a88f58c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174267&Signature=CNcrhyduRo9dlebGsY0UT7g0FXGiILgPntSTdTe8Ty5LnPIX~~T4Iarb8U0Rj-fnRrq4GTbb4Mf9s4rPAcLY8orkWuewBk9bSn5BKyu0F7mKZdlpUFKZo10dwjN5x63QTllMb2dENVzESGHAjSoXNvBDijWgxIxgiXarTBdAFnQnAx8YEyOnvZKXkCHXg6cJaOTMdN6MV76VM4UqQsUygZgt57MKj-NgguIn6LzlqK06BgMoSkH5FTwy79ygv-ITHn0Z~AMSzo3qh9JLYnp-HsPThKT9DdG5ZR5WI~ZeQHnZ3h-XNpF~Z-DppV5q7a4R66UNPLeg7VCTlTfRA64~3w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The South Carolina Senate Medical Affairs subcommittee voted to advance S.161, a bill intended to expand access to non‑opioid pain-management options and limit burdensome utilization management requirements that advocates say impede patients’ access to alternatives.

Margaret French, vice president with Voices for Non Opioid Choices, told senators the measure mirrors federal proposals to improve access to non‑opioid therapies and that expanding alternatives is a practical step to prevent opioid addiction. “This is a really important piece of legislation that we believe will help prevent opioid addiction by expanding access to non opioid pain treatments,” French said.

Speakers described the scale of opioid-related harms and the rationale for prevention. Testimony cited national and state figures: proponents said the country loses about 200 people per day to opioid overdose and that South Carolina recorded nearly 2,000 opioid-related overdose deaths in 2022, which advocates said represented 81 percent of fatal drug overdoses in the state that year.

The bill includes a requirement that prescribers inform patients about FDA‑approved non‑opioid alternatives and discuss advantages and disadvantages. Committee members adopted two amendments presented by sponsors and staff: one changed statutory wording from “provide” an educational pamphlet to “offer” it to avoid creating a mandatory provision for prescribers; the other removed references to the Department of Health and Human Services where DHHS advised it could implement administrative changes internally for FDA‑approved products.

Mary Grace Loveless and Bruce Loveless representing the Palmetto Foundation for Prevention and Recovery described personal and community programs the foundation runs, including Narcan availability, school programming and mentorship aimed at prevention and recovery.

After amendment votes, the subcommittee voted to send S.161 to the full Medical Affairs committee for further consideration. The record shows some dissent on amendment votes (one senator recorded a “no” on an amendment), but the bill was advanced for additional deliberation.

","Voices for Non Opioid Choices, recovery advocates and a range of committee members urged the subcommittee to advance S.161, which would reduce administrative barriers to FDA‑approved non‑opioid alternatives. The panel adopted two technical amendments and moved the bill to the full committee.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Senate subcommittee advances S.287 to restrict unapproved vaping products, citing youth use and enforcement gaps

Committee advances proposed consumer-protection language on kratom and similar products to full committee

Subcommittee backs S.161, a pain-parity bill to expand access to non-opioid treatments; two amendments adopted