H 5365

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026
Bill 5365
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)
A bill
TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING ARTICLE
17 TO CHAPTER 13, TITLE 24 SO AS TO ESTABLISH THE MEDICALLY RECOMMENDED
INTENSIVE SUPERVISION PROGRAM TO BE SUPERVISED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF PROBATION,
PAROLE AND PARDON SERVICES.
Be it enacted by the
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1.  Chapter 13, Title 24 of the S.C. Code is amended by
adding:
Article 17
Medically Recommended Intensive Supervision Program
    Section
24-13-1710.  (A) The Department of
Corrections and the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services shall
jointly develop the policies, procedures, guidelines, and cooperative agreement
for the implementation of a medically recommended intensive supervision program
that allows an inmate, other than an inmate who is serving a sentence of death
or life, or an inmate who is not a citizen of the United States, to be released
on medically recommended intensive supervision on a date designated by the
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services, if the inmate is
identified as:
       (1)
being elderly;
       (2)
being terminally ill;
       (3)
having an intellectual disability or a physical disability;
       (4)
having a condition requiring long-term care;
       (5)
being in a persistent vegetative state;
       (6)
having an organic brain syndrome with significant to total mobility impairment;
or
       (7)
having another eligible medical condition as prescribed by the Department of
Corrections and the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services; and
       (8)
it is determined, based upon his condition and a medical evaluation, that the
inmate does not pose a threat to public safety.
    (B) Inmates
approved and placed in the program shall be under the supervision of agents of
the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services. The department shall
prepare for an inmate who is approved for release under this article a
medically recommended intensive supervision plan that requires the inmate to
submit to electronic monitoring, places the inmate on super-intensive
supervision, or otherwise ensures appropriate supervision of the inmate.
    (C) The
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services shall require as a
condition of release under subsection (A) that the releasee remain under the
care of a physician and in a medically suitable placement. At least once each
calendar quarter, the department shall complete an evaluation of the releasee's
medical and placement status. On the basis of the evaluation, the department may
modify conditions of release and impose any condition on the releasee that may
be imposed on a releasee, including a condition that the releasee resides in a
halfway house or community residential facility.
    Section
24-13-1720.  The Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services may
request proposals from public or private vendors to provide, under contract,
services for inmates released on medically recommended intensive supervision. A
request for proposals under this section may require that the services be
provided in a medical care facility.
    Section
24-13-1730. (A) The Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services shall
promulgate regulations that:
        (1)
specify the procedures for evaluating the prognosis of inmates who are eligible
for medically recommended intensive supervision because of a qualifying medical
condition;
        (2)
specify the factors, other than an inmate's condition, that are relevant to
release an inmate on medically recommended intensive supervision; and
        (3)
define what constitutes a threat to public safety and specify the factors that
the department must consider when determining whether an inmate constitutes a
threat to public safety.
    (B)
The procedures described by subsection (A) must:
       (1)
require a review of the inmate's condition by at least one healthcare
practitioner; and
       (2)
require each healthcare practitioner who reviews an inmate's condition to
provide the department, before it makes a final determination, a written report
on the inmate's condition that:
  (a)
is in plain language that is understandable by a nonmedical professional;
  (b)
specifically describes how the inmate's condition and treatment for the
condition will affect the inmate's cognitive and physical abilities and
limitations; and
  (c)
contains other information as required by the department.
SECTION 2.  This act takes effect upon approval
by the Governor.
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This web page was last updated on March 11, 2026 at 11:22 AM