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With long lines forming at early voting polls, voters in Beaufort County may find that casting their ballot in the late afternoon will save them the most time.

Early voting in the county is available from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday, from Oct. 21 to Nov. 2., according to the county’s website. As of the third day of early voting in Beaufort County, 10% of registered voters — or about 12,600 residents — have already cast their ballots, said Marie Smalls, the director of the board of voter registration and elections for Beaufort County.

In South Carolina, early voting saw a record-breaking turnout on opening day, according to the state’s election committee. However, for the county, Smalls said it is challenging to make direct comparisons to previous years since this is only the second time the state has offered early voting since 2022.

“We kind of expected a high turnout, and I think for Beaufort County, it’s probably a little bit higher than expected,” Smalls said. “But I’m so happy that it is what it is.”

Early morning hours — around 7 to 8 a.m. — typically see the longest lines, Smalls said. Midday tends to offer a break, with shorter wait times, though lines pick up again in the early afternoon. Residents who are looking to avoid crowds should go to poll locations around late afternoons, particularly from 5 to 6 p.m., she said.

Polling locations specifically in Bluffton and Hilton Head have seen a steady turnout, Smalls said, with average wait times on Monday reaching no longer than 1 to 1.5 hours but decreasing since then.

Beaufort County offers four early voting centers:

Smalls encourages voters to check their sample ballots and verify their Election Day polling locations through the MyscVOTES website. To vote, residents will need to bring a qualifying ID, which may include a South Carolina driver’s license, motor vehicles ID card, voter registration card with photo, federal military ID or U.S. passport, according to the state’s election commission website.

She also emphasized that strict measures are in place to prevent voter fraud, and local election officials are confident in the integrity of the system.

This story was originally published October 24, 2024, 10:56 AM.

Novant Health recently announced it plans to build a new 50-bed hospital in Bluffton

Bluffton Today

Residents in Beaufort and Jasper counties will soon have another option for healthcare in the form of a new community hospital.

Novant Health recently announced plans to build a new full-service, community hospital campus in Bluffton as part of a major health care hub to increase access in South Carolina’s Lowcountry region.

Novant Health acquired East Cooper Medical Center in Charleston, Hilton Head Hospital in Hilton Head, and Coastal Carolina Hospital in Hardeeville and 27 associated physician clinics in February of this year.

The company said the expansion is designed to meet the holistic healthcare needs of the community for the long-term.

"Novant Health is committed to taking bold steps to create a healthier future for the communities we serve,” said Jason Bernd, president of Novant Health’s South Carolina region. “This integrative approach will limit the needs for residents to travel outside the area for care by offering a medical hub that provides patients comprehensive health care services.”

The community hospital is being built, officials said, with growth in mind. The hospital, which will be known as Novant Health Bluffton Medical Center, will be initially constructed with 50 beds with plans to expand to 100 beds, keeping in mind the future increasing needs of the community.

The future Novant Health Bluffton Medical Center will also include medical, surgical, emergency and trauma services, in addition to intensive care, labor and delivery, cardiology, neurology and orthopedics, as well as other medical specialties identified as needed in the area. Necessary regulatory approval documents will be submitted in the coming weeks, a hospital spokesperson said.

Additionally, Novant Health is planning several outpatient campuses in Bluffton, including a new free-standing emergency department, surgery centers, imaging services, urgent care, primary care and specialty care. Novant Health said the health system will bring an estimated 1,000 new jobs to the region and recruit a significant new health care workforce to accommodate the expansion plans.

“We look forward to engaging and partnering with our physicians, team members and community leaders as we develop new access points and services,” Bernd said. “With this expansion comes significant economic benefit too, including as many as 1,000 jobs for Bluffton over the next five years.”

Novant said they felt as though far too many residents in Beaufort and Jasper counties travel 30 minutes or more from home to receive health care that can be provided locally. The hospital said with these new health care campuses, Novant Health will significantly elevate access to health care close to home.

Novant Health said its health system is strategically expanding in South Carolina to support high-quality patient care offerings for residents and preparing for continued population growth as the region continues to attract retirees and families alike.

As part of the expansion, Novant Health said it plans to recruit at least 20 new primary care providers, in addition to specialists, to ensure our patients can access a range of outpatient care options locally.

Novant Health said it was also working to offer solutions to affordable housing in Beaufort and Jasper counties, where this issue is increasingly identified as a top community concern.

“We are working closely together with local leaders to identify solutions for this important issue that also impacts our health care workforce,” Joel Taylor, CEO of Hilton Head Medical Center, said. “We are committed to investing in our community and our people, from boosting housing opportunity to adding top-tier health care resources for the Lowcountry region.”

BLUFFTON — A local state senator called it "gamesmanship."

The chief executive of a competing hospital said the developments were "very frustrating."

Two weeks after a Lowcountry provider dropped plans to build a new hospital due to a lawsuit, one of the opponents proposed its own plans to create a new site nearby.

On Sept. 10, Beaufort Memorial Hospital withdrew its application to open a 20-bed hospital, succumbing to a lawsuit backed by North Carolina-based giant Novant Health.

More than two weeks later, Novant unveiled plans to open a 50-bed site in Bluffton. In a Sept. 26 news release, the nonprofit said it plans to expand the hospital to 100 beds in the future.

Health

The twin announcements continue the saga to expand health care access in Bluffton that has dragged on more than six years, intersected with a major legislative change and legal challenges. Novant now must navigate South Carolina's certification process, which could take years if there's legal opposition.

Asked whether Beaufort Memorial would challenge Novant's application to open the hospital, Chief Executive Officer Russell Baxley said the community medical provider is "looking at all of our options on the table at this point in time."

Beaufort Memorial initially announced plans to open a Bluffton hospital in 2018. The state health department approved its application to open the operation in July 2018, awarding a Certificate of Need for the $45 million project. While these certificates were designed to keep medical expenses down and control health services, the appeals process could also delay providers from opening new facilities.

Hurricane Wire

That proved true for Beaufort Memorial. The community hospital's certificate was challenged in court by Tenet Health, which owned facilities in Hilton Head and Hardeeville, and Candler Hospital in Savannah. Each of these entities raised questions about the project's financial feasibility and the need for a new hospital in the region. The case that began in October 2018 endured a stay that approached three years, while a related case was pended in a higher court.

A change to state law altered the complexion of the litigation. Gov. Henry McMaster signed a bill in May 2023 that would sunset the hospital certification requirement by 2027.

State Sen. Tom Davis, R-Beaufort, helped sponsor the bill. He said in a message that he wished there was no sunset, and that the repeal was immediate, but added that passing major legislation is difficult.

Citing the legislation, Candler dropped its legal challenge in September 2023. The S.C. hospitals continued to pursue the case through a December trial. Novant purchased the facilities in February.

Baxley said Beaufort Memorial met with Novant shortly after the nonprofit's acquisition to see if the organization would relinquish its legal challenge, which Novant declined.

Novant S.C. Regional President Jason Bernd said in an interview that the organization did not want to make any major strategic decisions while it assessed what the community needed. Dropping the lawsuit would qualify as a major strategic change.

Seeing that the litigation could continue well into the future, preventing Beaufort Memorial from achieving its January 2025 timeline for ground breaking, the community hospital opted to withdraw its certificate. Instead Beaufort Memorial intends to build a medical office building, freestanding emergency department, and ambulatory surgery center in its place.

"We felt forced to drop our CON in order to continue to avoid significant delays to build a hospital in the Bluffton area ... so we could move forward with a facility to meet the needs of the community" Baxley said. After dropping the CON, "(Novant) announced that they're going to build a hospital to meet the needs of the community. And I just find it very frustrating to say the least."

Davis called Novant's efforts "gamesmanship" and said the dispute between the two facilities showed why the state needed to repeal its CON requirement.

"There should not be artificial impediments to the flow of private capital into the development of new health care facilities," he said.

Bernd said the timing of the announcement about building the new hospital was not affected by the lawsuit. He said the plans were in the works for around the past half year.

Beaufort County News

Novant will need to submit a CON application to the state's health department, which Bernd said the organization plans to file imminently. According to state regulations, the department will make a decision on the effort between one and four months after the agency deems the application is complete, a process that can also take several months. Facilities and individuals affected by the nonprofit's plans can appeal an approval, potentially further delaying a groundbreaking.

Bernd said that construction for a hospital this size typically costs between $250-$300 million. Funds will come from Novant's organization, he said. The nonprofit also plans to open additional facilities, including its own ambulatory surgery and freestanding emergency department.

Baxley, of Beaufort Memorial, said it has been trying to fulfill the community needs all along.

"There's a need for beds there," Baxley said. "Somebody else decided that it wasn't going to be Beaufort Memorial beds."