SCbio President and CEO James Chappell, Ph.D., testified before the Medical and Health Affairs Subcommittee on Tuesday, January 20, opposing H. 4262.
What Is This Bill: H.4262 prohibits the administration of synthetic mRNA-based products for preventing communicable diseases in SC, with penalties for healthcare professionals—even if FDA-authorized in an emergency. This could delay or prevent access for SC residents (potentially requiring out-of-state travel), creating real challenges during a fast-moving threat.
Why This Matters: This bill would prohibit the use of synthetic mRNA-based gene therapies that are used for contagious illnesses, like COVID-19. It introduces a one-year license suspension penalty for doctors who prescribe it in South Carolina.
SCbio’s View: SCbio strongly opposed the anti-mRNA vaccine bill and any proposed amendments to it, warning that the legislation in any form would seriously undermine South Carolina’s ability to respond to emerging health threats. The organization argued that the bill would pose unacceptable risks to public health while creating a chilling effect on mRNA research and innovation, ultimately jeopardizing the state’s life sciences sector. SCbio urged the committee to reject the bill outright.
What Happened: Thanks to advocacy from SCbio and strong collaboration with key stakeholders and experts, debate on this bill—which would restrict access to proven, life-saving mRNA-based therapies for treatment of infectious diseases—has been adjourned in subcommittee, where it remains.
What to Know: Benefits of mRNA Technology
- Proven track record: High efficacy in trials (over 94% for early COVID-19 versions), good safety profile (non-infectious, no live virus), and efficient, scalable production.
- Versatile and fast: “Plug-and-play” design enables quick updates for variants or new threats; cell-free manufacturing avoids bottlenecks.
- Broad potential: The technology could help prevent millions of deaths annually from preventable diseases and support ongoing research in our state’s life sciences ecosystem.
On the Record:
“The vaccine is a life-changing technology that can treat a lot of diseases. It was chosen for a reason because it is a much faster option. You are looking at 3-4 months instead of 8-10-12 months for other vaccines. We don’t know if or when another pandemic may occur, so outright banning mRNA technologies for any vaccines for infectious diseases is a drastic measure that could put the entire population of S.C. at risk,” said Chappell.
“This is not a gene therapy like CRISPR, which makes double-strand breaks in your DNA to permanently edit or insert genetic material. mRNA vaccines do not alter, cut, or integrate into your DNA at all—they simply deliver temporary instructions to cells to produce a harmless protein, triggering an immune response before the mRNA is quickly degraded. mRNA tech is showing huge promise for treating cancer and other diseases, with personalized vaccines (like for melanoma and pancreatic cancer) advancing in trials and delivering strong immune responses. Banning mRNA vaccines could scare people away from these potentially life-saving treatments, slowing progress and hurting patients who need them most.”