Meg Cunningham
Meg Cunningham is The Beacon’s Missouri Statehouse reporter. Previously, Meg worked as a national politics reporter for ABC News in Washington, D.C., where she covered campaigns and elections. Meg is a Kansas City native and graduated from the Missouri School of Journalism. In her free time, she enjoys spending time outdoors, cooking and yoga.
-
Some rural Missouri towns like Oak Grove don’t have control over their main streets because they happen to be state highways. When they attempt downtown revitalization projects like planting trees and improving walkability, the Missouri Department of Transportation can make things complicated. -
The federal spending cuts proposed by the Republican-controlled Congress could lead to tens of thousands of jobs lost across Missouri and Kansas health care systems and food suppliers, a new study found. -
MO HealthNet covers more than 1.3 million, or one in five people in the state, across different eligibility groups. The majority of Missouri's Medicaid funding, including almost all of its expansion money, comes from the federal government. -
Egg prices are expected to increase by 20% in 2025, largely due to the spread of a highly pathogenic avian influenza. That's on top of an almost 40% price increase last year. -
Missourians voted for both President Donald Trump and to restore abortion access in November's election. In his first term, the Trump administration appointed Supreme Court justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, slashed Title X funding, and defunded health care clinics. -
Thanks to federal funds, 911 dispatchers and call centers are set for some major upgrades. Geolocation and new software are poised to bring a multitude of changes to the way emergency responders and dispatchers do their jobs. -
Kansas started this year without a state grocery tax after gradually reducing it in recent years. In Missouri, the total sales tax on groceries can get as high as 8%, which disproportionately affects low-income families. -
Missouri lawmakers will consider dozens of health-related bills this session. Topics like insulin pricing, food labeling and mental health are top of mind, as well as efforts to reverse the abortion rights amendment passed by voters in November. -
In Missouri, decades of laws restricted access to abortion even before lawmakers passed a near-total ban. Abortion figures to be particularly difficult to access for women in rural parts of the state. -
The U.S. Postal Service plans to consolidate some services to regional hubs in Kansas City and St. Louis. Critics say the move will hurt rural customers, especially people who rely on the mail for their medication delivery.
