Governor Kristi Noem signed Senate Bill 96 into law, which increases access to healthcare by allowing South Dakotans to utilize telehealth flexibilities.

“COVID-19 challenged us in new, unforeseen ways, and those challenges provided us an opportunity to adapt and find innovative ways to deliver healthcare in South Dakota,” said Governor Kristi Noem. “We greatly expanded telehealth in 2020. Going forward, we will build on these technological advancements and continue to find ways to remove government red tape in healthcare.”

SB 96 is a permanent extension of portions of both Executive Order 2020-07 and Executive Order 2020-16, which Governor Noem signed last year to increase flexibility in the state’s response to COVID-19. Pictures of the bill signing can be found here.

Governor Noem also signed SB 83 into law, which requires the provision of information regarding perinatal hospice. Pictures of that bill signing can be found here.

Governor Noem has signed 123 bills into law this legislative session.