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Thad Allton/Kansas ReflectorFederal Medicare and Medicaid regulations mandate staff vaccinations for employers that receive funding. But the high court ruled that Katlin Keeran was protected by a 2021 Kansas law making it illegal for employers to question the sincerity of religious beliefs for opting out of vaccines. -
Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri IndependentA judge ordered Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins to rewrite the ballot language for an anti-abortion ballot measure, calling it "insufficient and unfair” because it failed to mention the amendment would repeal abortion rights. Hoskins' new language still doesn't mention the ban.
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The Missouri Supreme Court reinstated several anti-abortion laws, even though abortion rights are now protected in the state constitution, and sent the issue back to a Kansas City judge. But abortion services remain available at clinics on the Kansas side of the metro. -
Two rulings from a Kansas City judge had allowed abortions in the state to resume while a challenge to its near-total ban proceeded to trial. -
Timothy Beckmann was arrested in late September but had not been convicted of any crimes yet. He was found dead Monday at the Jackson County Detention Center, months after being ordered into the custody of the Department of Mental Health. -
The YMCA of Greater Kansas City closed operations at a Head Start center near Swope Park today, after closing three others earlier this month. Officials say staffing levels were insufficient to serve the 289 children enrolled in the program. -
Kansas averages 25 dangerously hot days per year. That’s 10 more than it would in a world without climate change, according to the report. -
Factors as far away as the Caribbean Sea and as nearby as the cornfields of Iowa can bring on that muggy, sticky feeling. For people with certain health conditions, it’s more than an annoyance. -
After debates where local dentists made the case that fluoridated water was a crucial part of dental health, and out-of-town opponents argued it was dangerous, Rolla City Council has postponed a vote on a measure to remove fluoride from the drinking water. -
“The next three and a half years are going to continue to be very bumpy” for the reproductive rights movement, says Kathryn Boyd of Trust Women in Wichita. “We just have to be ready.” -
Even after Missouri Republicans pushed through a measure that would ban most abortions again, which voters will likely see on the 2026 ballot, Planned Parenthood will continue offering abortion services throughout the state. -
Congressional Republicans are looking to cut at least $880 billion from a pool of federal funding that includes Medicaid — and the program is likely to take a major hit. A previous budget crunch in Missouri offers a window into how cuts ripple through people's lives. -
Federal lawmakers are considering big cuts to the health care program Medicaid. Some Kansans fear they’ll lose coverage or benefits. -
Voters will likely see the issue on the ballot in 2026. The amendment would ban most abortions, with limited exceptions before 12 weeks of pregnancy, and also includes language banning gender-affirming care for minors — something that's already in state law.
