Greenville SC - A group of upstate lawmakers are working on a plan to provide emergency care in the northern areas of Greenville County. The legislators are wanting to partner with the Medical University of South Carolina and Bon Secours St Francis to fill an emergency care gap in the county.
There is no signed agreement and few details were provided Monday at a media briefing at Greenville County Square led by Taylors Representative Mike Burns, who told local media the North Greenville Emergency Services Work Group is seeking funding and regulatory approval for a free-standing emergency room facility.
Officials hope to use MUSC’s tele-medicine experience as well as staff from Bon Secours St Francis. For the more acute cases, patients would be taken to the St. Francis emergency room in downtown Greenville.
This initiative comes after Prisma Health announced late last year the permanent closure of North Greenville Hospital in Travelers Rest. The hospital had been temporarily closed in April for use as an overflow facility for critically ill Covid 19 patients.
Representative Burns at the briefing said he had been told numerous times the Travelers Rest facility would be re-opened, but said he understood that Prisma was doing what they had to do for financial reasons, but the result was a big healthcare gap in northern Greenville County.