New agency to oversee public health services in South Carolina [Video]

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WBTV) – Starting Monday, July 1, a new agency will oversee public health services across South Carolina.

As of the same date, the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) will no longer exist, and is being replaced by two new state agencies.

One of those new agencies is now over public health, and the other is over environmental services. The change comes after Gov. Henry McMaster signed a bill into law last year.

According to Dr. Edward Simmer, the interim director of the new Department of Public Health, services like obtaining birth certificates and requesting immunization records will essentially be the same process as before.

The office’s phone number will remain the same, and if people try to visit DHEC’s website, they will automatically be forwarded to the new Department of Public Health page.

Dr. Simmer said the reorganization gives health officials an opportunity to re-evaluate and improve how the …