A day after Kansas notified Planned Parenthood in May 2016 that it would cut off its participation in Medicaid, the nonprofit group sued to block the move.

So Kansas hired three high-powered East Coast law firms to defend it in a case that would slog on for nearly three years before Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s administration agreed to drop the termination effort in April.

If in recent years it seems that school shootings are happening more frequently, occupying public discourse and media coverage, it’s because they are. Although school shootings are still very rare compared to daily gun violence, the data show they are happening more often.

After years of complaints from customers, rising costs and declining service from contractors, the Kansas City Council voted to ditch the contractors and have city crews do weekly trash pick-ups throughout the city.

City council initially met the plan with skepticism, questioning how much money it would save the city, but they eventually passed the measure unanimously.

Michael Shaw, the city's Solid Waste Division director says he, too, is confident in the cost-savings estimates.

Missouri retained its lonely title as the only state without a statewide prescription drug monitoring program — for the seventh year in a row — after the legislative session ended Friday.

A stretch of buildings in the heart of the historic Troost commercial district would be transformed into offices, retail space and a museum, under a plan being pursued by development group that includes civic leader E. Frank Ellis.

Ellis, past chairman and founder of Swope Community Enterprises, along with Tim Bowman of Compass Resources LLC and Florida businessman Ovidiu Pop-Buia, want to renovate the historic Shankman and Michelson buildings at 3115-3131 Troost, and the Tycor building at 3105 Troost.