Certificate of need · South Carolina
South Carolina certificate of need
South Carolina has a certificate of need program, run by South Carolina Department of Public Health, Certificate of Need Program. It covers 2 kinds of services, listed below.
- CON program
- Yes
- Services covered
- 2
On this page
Certificate of need
South Carolina CON program
South Carolina has a certificate of need program, run by South Carolina Department of Public Health, Certificate of Need Program. It covers 2 kinds of services, listed below.
- CON program
- Yes
- Program
- Certificate of Need (State Certification of Need and Health Facility Licensure Act)
- Recent changes
- 2023 Act No. 20 (S.164), effective May 16, 2023, rewrote §44-7-160 so the general CON requirement applies to nursing homes rather than all health care facilities. New hospitals and hospital bed changes still need a CON under §44-7-160(B), which is repealed effective January 1, 2027, leaving nursing homes as the only facilities subject to CON. The program now sits in the S.C. Department of Public Health, which published a 2026 State Health Plan.
- Statute
- S.C. Code §§44-7-110 to 44-7-230 (esp. §44-7-160)
Scope
Services that need a certificate of need
- nursing homes: new facilities, bed additions or licensure reclassification, and capital expenditures above the regulatory threshold
- hospitals: construction or establishment of a new hospital, and bed additions or reclassification (only until January 1, 2027)
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Does South Carolina have a certificate of need law?
South Carolina has a certificate of need program, run by South Carolina Department of Public Health, Certificate of Need Program. It covers 2 kinds of services, listed below.