Senate medical affairs committee hears nomination of Dr. Edward Simmer to lead South Carolina Department of Public Health

Dr. Edward Simmer, nominee to continue as director of the South Carolina Department of Public Health, told the Senate Medical Affairs Committee on the record that he supports “medical freedom” and defended his agency’s COVID-era decisions while outlining recent agency accomplishments and plans.

Simmer made the remarks at a committee confirmation hearing chaired by Senator Burton. He called misinformation about his record “outrageously false,” said he has “never supported” vaccine mandates and summarized DPH work on newborn screening, immunization records, a new public health laboratory and a mobile maternity unit funded by the legislature.

The hearing’s nut graf: the session combined a defense of Simmer’s leadership with a public review of DPH operations and policy priorities, and included sharp questions from senators about COVID vaccine safety and public trust. The committee did not take a confirmation vote and recessed the hearing to continue at the chair’s call.

In prepared remarks, Dr. Simmer described his background and the arc of his agency’s work. He noted the committee had previously given him a favorable report in February 2021 and said he was confirmed by the full Senate “by a vote of 40 to 1” and assumed duties on Feb. 4, 2021. Simmer said DPH has expanded newborn screening, performed more than 240,000 newborn screenings and identified over 1,000 cases to date.

Simmer defended his approach to pandemic-era policy, saying he opposed shutdowns and that “decisions about treatment for COVID or any other condition should be made between the patient and their provider.” He said DPH’s public guidance is intended to inform individual choices: “We inform, you decide.” He told senators he has “never supported and I do not support mandating the COVID vaccine for anyone” and urged individuals to consult their medical providers about vaccination.

Senators pressed Simmer on vaccine safety claims circulating on social media. Senator Corbin of Greenville cited reports he said showed “DNA” and lipid nanoparticles in vaccines and asked whether DPH should promote the vaccine to children and pregnant women in light of those reports. Simmer answered that he supports vaccination for those at high risk of hospitalization or death, that “there are numerous studies” showing the vaccine is safe and effective for the vast majority of people, and that he would be willing to review the research separately with the senator.

“Kinds of side effects exist,” Simmer acknowledged, and he cited rare occurrences such as pericarditis and Guillain-Barré syndrome, noting the agency is candid about risks while weighing benefits. He said the best evidence he has seen indicates that trace DNA reported by some labs poses no known risk.

Senator Kimbrell of Spartanburg urged sensitivity to public perception and the heightened politicization of public-health language. Simmer agreed that public trust must be rebuilt and described DPH outreach to more than 10,000 community and faith-based groups, local governments and stakeholders to listen to local needs rather than simply prescribe programs.

On agency operations, Simmer described administrative work after the split of the former Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) into two cabinet agencies, the Department of Public Health and what he described as the Department of Environmental Services. He said DPH is consolidating staff into a single facility approved by the legislature in “Casey” and expects the move to be completed by June. He said a new state public health laboratory is under construction and “when it opens next year, it will be able to serve the people of South Carolina for decades to come” (he later referenced 2026 as the planned opening year). Simmer also said DPH will deploy three new mobile health units in May and that a legislatively funded mobile maternity unit is being developed to serve counties lacking obstetric care.

Simmer highlighted persistent maternal and infant health gaps, saying 15 of the state’s 46 counties have no OB-GYNs and five more counties have only one. He said DPH performed almost 4,000 in-home visits to new mothers last year and that WIC enrollment and breastfeeding support have increased among program participants.

Simmer also described DPH’s role in overdose prevention — distributing naloxone (Narcan) and opioid-safety kits — and in responding to animal-to-human disease risks such as avian influenza, saying the state lab is ready to test if needed. He emphasized transparency about how DPH reaches recommendations and said the department will post facility inspection reports and complaints online and implement consultation teams to help facilities improve before inspections.

Several senators thanked Simmer for his military service and condemned threats and intimidation directed at him and his family. The chairman said the committee will reconvene the confirmation hearing at the chair’s call; members were placed on an eight-person question list and no committee vote occurred at the session’s end.

The hearing combined a bipartisan focus on rebuilding public trust and continuing operational improvements at DPH with pointed questions from some senators about vaccine safety and the public messaging surrounding pandemic policy.

A continuation of the hearing was scheduled; the committee’s ultimate advice-and-consent action on the nomination was not recorded at this session.