On August 7, 2018, at the annual SC Association of Counties conference, it was announced that Bamberg County, along with Barnwell, Orangeburg, and Calhoun Counties, won the 2018 Barrett Lawrimore Regional Cooperation Award. The award recognizes projects that highlights the growing need for regional partnerships, strategies, and solutions. Competition for this award is open to two or more political subdivisions (counties or county partnerships formed with city, town, district, or regional government organizations) that worked together on a project.
In a highly competitive group with six other applicants, the three-judge panel selected the Bamberg-Barnwell Emergency Medical Center as the 2018 winner, as it is an innovative, scalable, replicable solution for a major healthcare challenge in rural communities. “I am proud of this collaborative project between four counties, a municipality, the Regional Medical Center of Orangeburg, SouthernCarolina Alliance, and the state delegation,” stated Joey Preston, Bamberg County Administrator. “The Barrett Lawrimore Regional Cooperation Award is highly competitive and there were many worthy applications this year. To win this esteemed award demonstrates the importance of this Emergency Medical Center to our communities, and also highlights the necessity of partnerships to address healthcare challenges in South Carolina’s rural counties.”