Missouri General Assembly
Between a Hard Rock & a Senate Race
KCPT’s Nick Haines, executive director of public affairs and Week in Review host, picks out the big stories of the week ahead and the interesting stories you may have missed. Trump Cancels Missouri Trip President Donald Trump canceled a scheduled visit to Missouri this week. The White House cited a potentially catastrophic hurricane on the…
Take 5 For Your Health
Regardless Of Sentence, ‘Medicaid 23’ Plan To Appeal An attorney for the so-called “Medicaid 23” says his clients will appeal their convictions on trespassing charges, even though they face no jail time. A Cole County, Missouri, jury on Wednesday acquitted 22 clergy members of obstructing government operations but found them guilty of trespassing when they…
New Law Provides Funds For Missouri Localities To Set Up Drug Monitoring Systems
New federal legislation aimed at combating the nation’s opioid addiction crisis has a provision tailored specifically for Missouri, which is the only state without a database designed to prevent pill shopping among multiple dispensers. The language, inserted by U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat, makes counties and municipalities eligible for federal funds that help…
Fountain City Frequency | Making History in Missouri Politics
Fountain City Frequency’s Matt Hodapp sat down with Kansas City Councilmember Jolie Justus to talk about her historical tenure as the first openly-gay member of the Missouri State Senate, where she served from 2007-2015. Here, and in the accompanying podcast, Justus gives the back story on her experience serving in the Missouri Legislature. Two years before…
Missouri’s Refusal To Expand Medicaid Leaves Hospitals Feeling The Pain
It’s a sweltering Monday afternoon, and in the emergency room of Truman Medical Centers near downtown Kansas City, a patient complains of excruciating abdominal pain. The attending physician advises her there’s only so much he can do. “The reality is you can get whatever pain medication I’m able to give you in an effort to…
As deep-red states expand Medicaid, Nixon says Missouri is leaving money on the table
As other deep-red states agree to expand Medicaid within their borders, Gov. Jay Nixon says Missouri is leaving federal health care dollars on the table.
Why Missouri Medicaid expansion for veterans gets mixed reviews
The Veteran’s Family Healthcare Act, which would provide Medicaid coverage for veterans, their spouses and dependent children with incomes between 19 percent and 138 percent of the federal poverty level.
Can Missouri afford not to expand Medicaid?
Even as prospects appear bleak for Medicaid expansion in Missouri, a new report says the state would save $81 million right off the bat and $100 million annually later on if it expands the program. The report by the Missouri Budget Project, a nonpartisan think tank in St. Louis, says the savings would come from money the state currently spends on Medicaid services provided to pregnant women, mental health patients and prisoners in need of medical care.
A guide to the legislative sessions, from the ‘Week In Review’ crew
Missouri lawmakers returned to Jefferson City this week and on Monday, Kansas legislators will gather in Topeka for the opening of a new session. From what to do about Ferguson to putting toll booths on I-70, legalizing marijuana to expanding Medicaid…Nick Haines and the panel provide a guide to the upcoming legislative sessions in both states.
In Missouri legislature, stage may be set for more abortion restrictions
Missouri’s abortion regulations, among the strictest in the nation, may get even stricter. Several lawmakers have already pre-filed abortion-related legislation in both the state House of Representatives and Senate.