Former SC Republican House Speaker Jay Lucas joins Prisma Health
Former South Carolina House Speaker Jay Lucas has a new job, less than a month after leaving the state Legislature.
The Darlington County Republican, who resigned his legislative post June 28, will join Prisma Health as its senior vice president for government affairs, the hospital announced Wednesday in a statement.
Lucas, an attorney, starts at Prisma July 25, where he’ll lead South Carolina’s largest health care organization’s government affairs activities at the local, state and national levels.
“Jay is a highly respected leader who is well-known for his ability to build productive relationships among diverse constituencies to achieve positive outcomes,” Prisma Health president and CEO Mark O’Halla said in a statement. “He is the perfect person to help us achieve our purpose of improving the health and well being of South Carolinians by working with policymakers and regulatory agencies in Columbia, in Washington, D.C. and in the local municipalities that Prisma Health calls home.”
Prisma Health spokeswoman Tammie Epps said Lucas’ new role would not involve lobbying lawmakers and that he did not plan to register as a lobbyist. Rather, Lucas will be a strategist working as part of Prisma’s executive team in the areas of government affairs and health policy, she said.
By law, former state lawmakers are prohibited from serving as lobbyists for a year after their public service ends.
Lucas, who represented House District 65, which includes parts of Darlington, Kershaw, Lancaster and Chesterfield counties, from 1999 to 2022 and served four terms as House Speaker, expressed excitement about his new role.
“I have seen firsthand the dedication of the physicians, nurses and staff to providing compassionate patient care and improving community health,” he said in a statement. “I am so pleased to be part of this team and help with the important, meaningful work that is in front of us.”
Lucas, 64, announced in March that he would not seek reelection in 2022. He’s since been replaced as Speaker by Murrell Smith, R-Sumter.
This story was originally published July 20, 2022 at 1:17 PM.