abortion

The activists who tried and failed to defeat Missouri's 2024 abortion-rights amendment have regrouped under a new PAC called“Her Health, Her Future." They're betting that more time, tighter coordination and earlier backing from top Missouri Republicans can help them pass an abortion ban measure this fall.

Hours after Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed a bill aimed at protecting crisis pregnancy centers, Republican lawmakers reversed the veto, citing a desire to preserve life in the state.

Sarah Ruden uncovers how literature about women has been used to justify control over their bodies, starting with ancient poetry through modern debates. She'll be speaking about her new book "Reproductive Wrongs" at the Kansas City Public Library this week.

The November amendment would prohibit most abortions in the state, overturning a 2024 vote to protect abortion rights. But two-thirds of surveyed Missouri voters also say they support banning gender-affirming care for minors, which is also included in the ballot question.

The Alliance Defending Freedom is behind a legislation known as the CARE Act, moving through a number of statehouses. Other states are trying to crack down on anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers, accusing them of deceptive practices.

The bill prohibits state and local governments from requiring centers perform abortions, counsel clients in favor of abortion, and hire people “who do not affirm the center’s mission or pro-life ethic.” Gov. Laura Kelly can veto the bill, sign it or let it become law without her signature.

The Kansas Supreme Court determined in 2019 that the state's constitution protects abortion because it protects a woman's right to personal autonomy.

The Missouri senator claims the drug puts patients at risk, while advocates say decades of data back up mifepristone's safety.

Missouri sends the bulk of its funds from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program — intended to help families get into the workforce so they no longer need government aid — to crisis pregnancy centers, which are frequently faith-based and anti-abortion.

Mifepristone is facing another major legal challenge. The NPR Network wants to hear from people who've been prescribed the medication about their experiences.

For the second year in a row, state Sen. Mike Moon, an Ash Grove Republican, is sponsoring a proposed constitutional amendment that would treat embryos as people, potentially exposing abortion patients and providers to murder charges and eliminating rape and incest exceptions.

A bad national environment for Republicans could affect this year's election cycle, which will feature critical ballot measures like a proposal to repeal abortion rights, restricting citizen-led initiative petitions, and deciding the fate of the gerrymandered congressional map.