Senate sets tort-reform bill S.244 for special order, adopts Tech First resolution and confirms DHHS director Eunice Medina

The South Carolina Senate on an unspecified date set S.244 — a tort-reform measure commonly discussed alongside dram-shop liability proposals — for special order by a roll call vote of 34–6, advanced a concurrent resolution promoting technology access for people with disabilities and confirmed Eunice Medina as director of the Department of Health and Human Services.

The vote to set S.244 for special order was moved by the senator from Edgefield and carried after a roll call. The motion to schedule the bill for later, extended debate passed 34–6. The chamber did not complete floor debate on the bill during the session; senators instead voted to return to the matter at a later, scheduled time.

Why it matters: S.244 and related measures have been characterized in the chamber as consequential for both plaintiffs and businesses. Setting the bill for special order guarantees a dedicated floor period for fuller debate and a recorded vote.

Senator Devine, the senator from Richland, addressed the chamber earlier in the session about the incoming bills S.184 and S.244, urging cooler heads in what she described as a polarized debate. "This does not have to be a 0 sum game," Senator Devine said, adding that lawmakers can be simultaneously "pro-business" and "proponent[s] of…