Missouri News & Current Events | Public News Service

A group of U.S. Senators has introduced a new voting-rights bill, known as the Freedom to Vote Act. (ungvar/Adobe Stock)

Monday, September 20, 2021

Groups See MO Proposals as Voter-Suppression Attempts

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- As lawmakers in Congress work to expand access to voting, members of the Missouri Legislature are proposing laws their critics …

New Jersey and California were the only states to receive "C" grades in a new report on state prison systems' handling of COVID-19; most received lower marks. (Adobe Stock)

Friday, September 17, 2021

Report: MO Receives Failing Grade for Handling of COVID in Prisons

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - One out of every three people incarcerated in the United States has contracted COVID-19, and a new report shows how state …

A new study about how parents talk with their kids about racial violence will focus in part on Missouri, where Black families still deal with the impacts of the police killing of Michael Brown in 2014. (Elvert Barnes/Flickr)

Study to Probe How Black Parents, Kids in MO Discuss Racial Violence

ST. LOUIS -- More than a year after the police killing of George Floyd that sparked nationwide protests, a professor in St. Louis is taking on a …

Missouri, Nevada, Illinois and Oregon are among the most recent states to update their HIV laws.(nito/Adobe Stock)

MO Makes First Update to HIV Criminalization Laws in 30 Years

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A bill that went into effect over the weekend makes the first reforms to Missouri's HIV criminalization laws since they were …

More than 50% of Missouri residents have now received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. (Atlas/Adobe Stock)

Vaccine Lottery Winnings Can Be Put Toward MO ABLE Accounts

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Missourians who have received COVID-19 vaccinations can enter to win the Missouri Vaccine Incentive Program Lottery - 900 …

Between 2015 and 2019, food insecurity declined 5% statewide, and groups are working to keep that going. (Kimberley Sprenger)

Summer Nutrition Program Includes Meals for Kids to Try On Their Own

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- More than 200,000 Missouri kids are facing food insecurity, according to the Missouri Kids Count 2021 Data Book. Today is the …

Missouri is one of just three states without an online ballot-tracking system. (alexandra/Adobe Stock)

Report: MO Voting Laws Hamper Access to Ballot Box

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A new report finds Missouri lags behind many other states in voting access. The Campaign Legal Center graded states on …

Many Missourians don't have broadband because they don't need or want it, can't afford it, or don't have a reliable computer. (Adobe Stock)

Missouri Lags Behind Other States in Broadband Access, Adoption

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Missouri lags behind many other states in broadband access and adoption, which can limit people's ability to participate in the …

St. Louis public-school students are encouraged to come to Gateway Middle School Saturday for information, health screenings, vaccines and school supplies ahead of the first day of school on Aug. 23. (Jenifoto/Adobe Stock)

Teachers Unions Inform MO Families About Safe Return to School

ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- St. Louis educators' unions are working to let families know what to expect at school this fall, and urging them to get ready…

In a CDC survey, 57% of pediatricians said loss of health insurance has been at least "a minor barrier" to providing routine childhood checkups and vaccinations during the pandemic. (BGStock72/Adobe Stock)

Report: Families Urged to Catch Up on Kids' Doctor Visits

ST. LOUIS - The pandemic paused many facets of life, and a new report says wellness checkups for children were among them. With school resuming this …

Studies show Medicaid expansion could reduce costs for Missouri's health-care system as a whole, by getting more patients preventive care, which is less expensive than emergency care. (torwaiphoto/Adobe Stock)

Groups Urge Swift Funding After Court Upholds Medicaid Expansion

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Health-care advocates called on Missouri lawmakers to allocate funds for Medicaid expansion right away, after the state …

The Recovering America's Wildlife Act would dedicate $1.3 billion dollars to state conservation efforts and $97.5 million to tribal nations. (Tyler/Adobe Stock)

Blunt Sponsors Bipartisan Senate Effort to Protect Wildlife

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Senators reintroduced the Recovering America's Wildlife Act Tuesday, led by Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., along with Sen. Martin …

Commissioners charged with redistricting in Missouri are set to meet for the first time in August to draw new legislative district maps. (luzitanija/Adobe Stock)

Groups: Put MO Voters Over Partisan Interests in Redistricting

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Redistricting reformers urged the people charged with drawing new voting-district maps in Missouri to commit to putting the …

Missouri lawmakers passed "raise the age" legislation in 2018, and it went into effect this year. (K Stocker/Adobe Stock)

17-Year-Olds in MO Now Will Be Treated as Juveniles, Not Adults

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- In Missouri's courts, 17-year-olds will now be automatically treated as juveniles rather than adults if they're taken into …

A survey taken during the height of the pandemic found more than 90% of Americans had a favorable view of the U.S. Postal Service. (mokee81/Adobe Stock)

Groups Say Postal Reform Bill Would Benefit Rural Missouri

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Supporters of the U.S. Postal Service are pressing for passage of a bill to shore up the troubled agency. Twin versions of …

Help to fill out a FAFSA form for federal student aid is one example of now Missouri community partnerships support young people pursuing education and careers as they age out of the foster care system. (Bill Doss/Adobe Stock)

Groups Connect MO Youth in Foster Care with Life, Work Skills

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Community partnerships in Missouri are working to help young people, either in or aging out of foster care, connect with …

Missouri's congressional districts are drawn by the Legislature, and state legislative districts by two redistricting commissions made up of politicians, one for the state House and one for the state Senate. (Evgeny/Adobe Stock)

Coalition Seeks Public Input on Missouri's New Voting-District Maps

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- As Missouri lawmakers prepare to draw lines for the next decade of voting-district maps, groups advocating for a fair process are …

Nearly 90% of Americans acknowledged there is a stigma surrounding HIV in a 2020 survey by GLAAD. Proponents of National HIV Testing Day hope to help change that. (Syda Productions/Adobe Stock)

MO Groups Call Testing Key, Strive to End HIV Stigma

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- This Sunday is National HIV Testing Day, when people are urged to find out their HIV status to protect themselves and their …

One in ten Missouri teens didn't graduate high school on time in 2019, down from 19% in 2010 - though last fall, more than 40% of Missourians planning to pursue higher education either cancelled or reduced course loads. (Tom Wang/Adobe Stock)

Report: MO Children, Families to Benefit from Child Tax Credit Expansion

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri is ranked 30th among states for overall child wellbeing in a new report, and advocates for kids and families say the …

The $1.6 billion from the Medicaid provider tax draws nearly $3 billion in federal Medicaid match funds. (Steven Martin/Flickr)

Groups Urge MO Legislators to Renew Medicaid Provider Tax

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that state fiscal relief has "maintenance of effort" requirements. (8:15 a.m. MDT…

A new Gallup survey shows more than 60% of Americans say they know "a little bit" or "nothing at all" about Juneteenth, the date that celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. (DoDEA.edu)

Juneteenth Declared National Holiday, Amidst Progress, Upheaval

JEFFERSON CITY, MO. -- Juneteenth National Independence Day is now an official holiday, after President Joe Biden signed a bill Thursday, approved by …

Missourians working full time at the minimum wage often pay more than half their income on rent each month, and many people lost their jobs during the pandemic. (asiraj/Adobe Stock)

Report Urges Strong Eviction Moratoriums, Robust Rental Aid

ST. LOUIS -- A new study of eviction filings in St. Louis during the pandemic found people within protected classes under the Fair Housing Act…

More than 90% of Democrats, more than 70% of Independents and nearly 45% of Republicans believe the constitutional right to an abortion should be protected, according to recent polling. (Mark Schierbecker/Wikimedia Commons)

Bill Would Curb Medically Unnecessary Restrictions on Abortion

ST. LOUIS - Lawmakers in Congress are reintroducing the Women's Health Protection Act, which would ensure a pregnant person's right to access - and a …

Black bears in Missouri typically are seen south of Interstate 44, although the population is growing. (Jillian/Adobe Stock)

Conservation Department Urges Missourians to Be 'Bear Aware' This Summer

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Late spring and early summer are when Missourians are most likely to come across one of the state's estimated 800 black bears - …

In the 2020 presidential election, women cast nearly 10 million more votes than men. However, more men hold public office than women, according to Rutgers University's Center for American Women and Politics. (Adobe Stock)

Despite High Voter Turnout, Women Hold Only 30% of Political Offices

ST. LOUIS - Women account for a majority of the U.S. population, but a new report shows they make up less than one third of high level government …

Tens of millions of households in the United States spend more than a third of their income on rent, and the pandemic has impacted many Missourians' abilities to keep up. (steheap/Adobe Stock)

Legal-Aid Groups: Know Your Rights When Facing Eviction

ST. LOUIS -- With the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) eviction moratorium on shaky legal ground and set to expire at the end of June…

More than 400 nurses have died while working on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Adobe Stock)

Nurses Share Lessons from Pandemic on International Nurses Day

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- This International Nurses Day, nurses in Missouri are raising concerns about the long-term mental health impacts of the COVID-1…

Voting-rights advocates say the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act would help prevent restrictive voting laws from being passed in Missouri. (SEIU/Flickr)

Missourians Join Call to Pass John Lewis Voting Rights Act

ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Missouri voting-rights advocates joined a national call to action Saturday to promote the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act …

Public-school advocates oppose bills before the Legislature that would allow for the expansion of charter schools and give tax credits for paying private school tuition. (Wikimedia Commons)

Groups Say Slate of School Bills Would Undermine Public Education

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Advocates for public schools are urging the Missouri Legislature to bolster funding for public education, rather than shift …

Missouri needs more teachers in the sciences, math and special education, and the need is critical both in rural and deeply urban communities. (JackF/Adobe Stock)

MO Education Dept. Looks to Reduce Teacher Shortage

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri is facing a teacher shortage, and for Teacher Appreciation Week, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education …

Experts say expanding Medicaid will help prevent uninsured Missourians from letting health conditions go untreated, making it less likely they'll end up in an emergency room. (niyazz/Adobe Stock)

Lessons for MO Lawmakers from States that Expanded Medicaid

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - As the state Senate debates Missouri's budget for next year, groups are urging lawmakers to learn from the 38 states that have …

Nationwide, more than 250 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced in state legislatures. (Adobe Stock)

LGBTQ Advocates Oppose Bills Seen as Harmful to Trans Youth

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri House of Representatives advanced a bill aimed to ban transgender kids from participating in girls sports…

Voters in Missouri approved a ballot initiative expanding Medicaid. If the state funds it, Missouri will be on track to receive more than $1 billion in federal incentives. (Drazen/Adobe Stock)

Pediatricians: Failure to Fund Medicaid Expansion Could Have Long-Lasting Impacts

COLUMBIA, Mo. - As lawmakers continue their debate on whether to fund voter-approved Medicaid expansion in Missouri, pediatricians say lack of access …

Nationwide, roughly 60% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable. In Missouri, it's closer to 80%. (Adobe Stock)

Increased Access to Quality Health Care Could Reduce Black Maternal Mortality

ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Black women in Missouri are four times as likely to die during childbirth than white women, and during Black Maternal Health Week…

To prevent tick-borne disease, Missouri officials recommend walking in the center of a trail, wearing light colors, long pants and sleeves, and using insect repellent, among other measures. (gabort/Adobe Stock)

New MO Study to Map Tick Populations, Tick-Borne Illnesses

KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - When it comes to ticks, Missouri's not too hot, not too cold, very humid and has lots of wildlife - which means lots of potential …

Missouri had three initiatives on the ballot in 2020, one during the August primary and two in the November general election. (Andrey Popov/Adobe Stock)

Good-Government Groups Urge End to Attacks on Ballot-Initiative Process

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Good-government groups are opposing two bills before the Legislature, saying they would limit voters' ability to reform state …

The Missouri state House voted 100-52 to exclude funding for Medicaid expansion from the state budget. (Vitalii Vodolazskyi/Adobe Stock)

MO State House Excludes Medicaid Expansion from Budget

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Despite a majority of Missourians voting for Medicaid expansion in last year's elections, Republican state House lawmakers …

Missouri's minimum wage currently is $10.30 an hour, but a bill before the Legislature would bring it down to slightly more than $8 an hour. (Paul Sableman/Flickr)

Workers, Small-Business Owners Oppose Bill to Cut Minimum Wage

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Workers and small-business owners are voicing opposition to a bill before the Legislature which would tie Missouri's minimum wage …

Older women tend to take home roughly 80% of the retirement income that older men do, according to the National Institute on Retirement Security. (9nong/Adobe Stock)

Women's Wage Gap Correlates With Retirement Gender Gap

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- This Wednesday is Women's Equal Pay Day, the average date it would take a woman working full-time to earn what a man did in 2020…

Missouri is one of two states, along with Oklahoma, in the process of implementing Medicaid expansion with voter-approval through ballot initiatives. (Julia/Adobe Stock)

Report: MO Kids to Benefit from Voter-Supported Medicaid Expansion

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Voters in Missouri passed a ballot initiative last fall expanding Medicaid, and the state is on track to receive more than $1 …

Community partnerships have found ways to adapt in order to keep caring for children and families throughout the pandemic. (Gargonia/Adobe Stock)

Pandemic Shifts Methods of Caring for Children, Families

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The COVID-19 pandemic has left many Missouri families financially insecure, especially those with children, and it's also …

Nationwide, more than 1.3 million front-line public service workers have lost their jobs because of budget shortfalls because of the pandemic. (Tatyana A./Adobe Stock)

MO Groups Urge U.S. Senate to Pass COVID Relief

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri families are struggling to get through the pandemic, and advocates for low-income and working people are urging the …

A new book highlights local Black historical figures 200 years after Missouri became a state in 1821. (Kansas City Black History Partnership)

Kansas City Partnership Highlights Local Black History

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A decade-long partnership in Kansas City is lifting up local stories of Black community-building and struggles for justice and …

Dental spending dropped nearly 40% in 2020, and it's estimated to drop another 20% this year. (hedgehog94/Adobe Stock)

Dentists: Regular Care Prevents Tooth Decay

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- By age five, nearly half of all children have at least one cavity, but in the last year, many kids' regular visits to the …

Documentary Shows Self-Proclaimed Conservatives Exploring Inequalities

ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- With former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial demonstrating deep divisions in the nation, a new documentary released today …

Missouri could become one of 14 states to take legislative action on media literacy, if lawmakers pass a bill to incorporate it into K-12 education. (Chinnapong/Adobe Stock)

Bill Would Bring Media-Literacy Training to MO Schools

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Missouri lawmaker introduced a bill which would add media literacy training to the public-school curriculum. House Bill 74 …

The For the People Act, if passed, will include campaign finance reforms and mandate independent commissions to draw voting district maps. (freshidea/Adobe Stock)

Good-Government Groups Say MO Needs Democracy Reform

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Good-government groups in Missouri say that a major democracy reform package, HR1 - or the For the People Act - would bring the …

Between 2009 and 2019, 132 people were killed by police and 47 others died in police custody in the St. Louis area. (Wikimedia Commons)

Report: St. Louis Metro Has Highest Average Rate of Police Killings

ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Metro Police Department has the highest average rate of killings per population of any major police department in the …

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