South Carolina H 4605: Freedom from ideological coercion and indoctrination

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 4605 Text of Previous Version (Dec. 17, 2025) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 4605

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 
SO AS TO ENACT THE "VETERAN SUICIDE AND MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS RESPONSE ACT"; AND 
BY ADDING SECTION 25-15-50 SO AS TO CREATE GUARANTEED IMMEDIATE MENTAL HEALTH 
CRISIS ACCESS FOR VETERANS, ESTABLISH MOBILE VETERAN CRISIS RESPONSE TEAMS, 
REQUIRE SAME-DAY SUICIDE INTERVENTION CARE STATEWIDE, AND TO PROVIDE FOR 
FUNDING AND ACCOUNTABILITY.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 
1. This act may 
be cited as the "Veteran Suicide and Mental Health Crisis Response Act."

SECTION 2. (A) The General Assembly 
finds:

 (1) 
South Carolina has one of the highest veteran suicide rates in the Southeastern 
United States, with significant increases among older veterans, rural veterans, 
and Black veterans who often face cultural, geographic, and stigma-based 
barriers to mental health care.

 (2) 
Current mental health access systems require referrals, waitlists, and long 
travel distances, which fail to meet the needs of veterans in crisis, resulting 
in preventable deaths.

 (3) 
Gratitude and symbolic recognition alone do not address this crisis. The State 
must build permanent, structural access pathways that ensure veterans can 
receive immediate, in-person crisis care when needed.

 (B) 
The purpose of this act is to provide a statewide, guaranteed crisis response 
infrastructure for veterans that eliminates waiting barriers, creates same-day 
care access, and deploys mobile crisis units to rural counties, ensuring no 
veteran is left without help when experiencing trauma or suicidal distress.

SECTION 3. Chapter 15, Title 25 of the 
S.C. Code is amended by adding:

 Section 
25-15-50. (A) Each county must 
designate at least one location where a veteran may receive same-day behavioral 
health crisis assessment and stabilization, without referral, appointment, or 
insurance verification. The location must be open from at least 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. 
Monday through Sunday and must accept Medicaid.

 (B) The Department of Mental Health, in 
coordination with the Department of Veterans' Affairs, shall establish Mobile 
Veteran Crisis Response Teams, staffed by licensed clinicians and veteran peer 
specialists. The response time must be in ninety minutes or less when feasible 
and priority must be given to rural counties and counties with a high suicide 
risk.

 (C) The General Assembly shall 
appropriate recurring funds to implement the provisions of this section.

SECTION 
4. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

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This web page was last updated on December 17, 2025 at 12:49 PM