birth control

In a ruling Monday, Circuit Judge Jon Beetem wrote that the summaries crafted by Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft were "argumentative" or unfairly biased against the abortion rights ballot initiatives, and ignored their protections for contraceptives.. Beetem rewrote each of the six ballot summaries himself.

After the Missouri legislature voted to block Planned Parenthood from receiving Medicaid reimbursements last year, Planned Parenthood sued. A judge concluded it was unconstitutional for the state to deny access to funds available to other health care providers, but the attorney general's office is appealing.

According to findings from a Right Time survey, more than 50% of Missourians do not believe or know that emergency contraception is legal. The survey also found that roughly 72% of respondents across party lines want the state legislature to pass laws that make birth control more accessible and affordable.

Missouri was the first state to pass a near-total abortion ban after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. But advocates also say the decision has had spillover effects, sowing confusion over the legality of contraception and concern over doctors’ discretion to provide emergency care.

The mobile clinic will be part of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, and will provide medication abortions up to 11 weeks gestation. It’s expected to launch later this year.

Earlier this year, some Republican lawmakers in Missouri unsuccessfully tried to ban taxpayer funding for emergency contraception, which some lawmakers consider a form of abortion.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said he has no plans to call a special legislative session to protect access to contraceptives and address ectopic pregnancies. Democratic leaders called on the governor to hold a special session now that the state has banned nearly all abortions.

Missouri has now banned abortion in the state, except in cases where a parent’s health is severely threatened. But the full effects of the state’s ban and its legal ramifications are still to be seen, and activists on both sides say their work is far from over.

Almost all abortions will immediately become illegal in Missouri if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. But some reproductive rights advocates worry that access to contraceptives could be targeted next. Plus, how Missouri and Kansas politicians are reacting to the deadly school shooting in Texas.

If Missouri's abortion ban takes effect, reproductive rights advocates worry the next fight could be over birth control. The Missouri Senate voted last year to ban common forms of contraceptives like the “morning after” pill and some IUDs from being paid for by the state’s Medicaid program.

The tax on health care providers is free of controversial amendments, but the same committee passed a separate bill that would defund Planned Parenthood.

The tax crucial to Medicaid’s funding heads to the House after hours of behind-closed-doors discussion