South Carolina Pandemic Healthcare Ethics Advisory Council

This committee was originally formed in 2005 as a result of the ethical issues faced by practitioners during Hurricane Katrina. At that time the focus was on the distribution of medical resources during all public health emergencies. In 2009 a subcommittee was reconvened to develop guidelines for pandemic preparedness and distribution during the H1N1 pandemic. Aspects of those guidelines have since been instituted into SC law. This subcommittee was reconvened in early March 2020 to re-evaluate the needs of the state in response to Covid-19. We have released two sets of recommendations, one for distribution of hospital-based resources (ventilators, staff, hospital beds), and one specifically related to the distribution of an anti-viral medication for use in ICUs. Our recommendations are being employed by hospitals state-wide, and evaluated by the governor and legislators to serve as guidelines for future legislation. The committee will continue its work in the coming months to respond to issues related to health disparities, vaccine distribution, and other public health questions that arise as a result of this pandemic. More at https://news.furman.edu/2020/04/20/hosptial-resources/