S.C. bill would require human trafficking training for medical professionals
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - A bill that would require medical professionals to complete training on knowing the signs of human trafficking and caring for victims will be heard on the floor of the House in Columbia this week.
House Rep. Spencer Wetmore, representing District 115, helped author and introduce the bill. Wetmore says the bill is earning bipartisan , and she hopes it will quickly make it through the House in the last few days of the 2024 legislative session at the statehouse.
“I introduced this bill with every woman in the state house. So, all of us came together, the Republican Party, the Democratic Party, even the Freedom Caucus, coming together saying that this was a priority issue for us. And of course, our male colleagues are ive as well, but we thought it was a cool statement to have all the women come together in of this issue, and all of us are co-sponsors on this bill,” Wetmore says.
According to the Tri-County Human Trafficking Task Force, research shows that over 85% of victims will seek medical attention during their victimization. This places healthcare professionals at the forefront of identification and intervention for trafficking victims.
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“And in fact, it was our medical professionals indicating to us that they really wanted to see more training to be able to identify, you know, signs to look for, questions to ask, and resources that would be available. And so this bill is really an example of us coming together with law enforcement and the medical profession to make a really common-sense, small change that I hope will help us better identify these cases,” Wetmore says.
Lauren Knapp is a co-chair of the Tri-County Human Trafficking Task Force. She credits the force’s Healthcare Subcommittee Lead, Erin Hart, with pinpointing this opportunity.
“She encounters and deals with these types of trafficking cases regularly working at MUSC, and what she realized was that our state didn’t require health care workers to have any type of training as it related to education and identifying indicators for trafficking victims,” Knapp says.
The bill would require successful completion of a one-hour trafficking course for renewal of a physical license, as well as reinstatement or reactivation. It is not an additional hour of training, but would become one of 40 hours of already required training.
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If the bill es by the end of the January 2026 session, professionals would be required to complete it as soon as possible, and then every six years as a refresher on updated information.
“Right now, within the Tri-County area, we are dealing with both labor and sex trafficking victims at this time. A lot of these victims get caught up in schemes. Sometimes it’s for work, sometimes it’s for putting themselves out there, then somebody taking advantage of that, and they can’t find a way out,” Knapp says.
The bill leaves the curriculum format and specific information up to the State Board of Nursing, with the requirement for the education to cover identifying suspected trafficking victims, laws for reporting suspected trafficking victims, and providing care and to potential trafficking victims.
Knapp says human trafficking can present itself in many different ways, but tell-tale signs during a medical visit for an emergency can be a victim staying silent while a trafficker controls the situation, answering for them.
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“We recently just had a case in the southern part of the state, and actually the survivor was identified through an ER visit because she had appendicitis. And what we found out was, as things were unpacked and as more medical history was presented, the nurse was very, very, very, very smart and took the initiative, said something’s not quite right here, and asked more questions. The trafficker was controlling her answers. Things just were off,” Knapp says.
Knapp says it’s hard to know the potential impact this training could create, but to sponsors and task force , it’s common sense legislation to create as much education and awareness as possible.
“We’re trying to create sensors in the community. You don’t know what you don’t know, and if we can educate on the indicators in certain sectors and environments, then we allow those sensors to grow, and everybody can report it in the healthcare community, now that we know that the healthcare staff wants the training, because they know something’s just not quite right,” Knapp says.
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Knapp thanks local leaders, including the Solicitors Scarlett Wilson and David Pascoe, and the Tri-County sheriffs for their vocal of the bill, saying it will help their ability to prosecute perpetrators to have educated eyes in places where victims statistically will appear.
“I am a former prosecutor, and to this day, I try to make sure that the legislation I focus on is going to serve women and families, make our community safer, and this bill really spoke to me as something, as an opportunity to do both of those things,” Wetmore says.
The bill is expected to be heard on the House floor this week before the end of the 2025 session on May 8. If it es, the Senate will take it up in the January session of 2026.
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