Missouri abortion amendment

Abortion may be legal again in Missouri, but only 80 elective abortions have been performed in the year since Amendment 3 passed. Decades of restrictions have gutted the state’s provider network, and medication abortion is still unavailable as the courts sort out which old laws are constitutional.

The ballot measure also includes a ban on gender affirming health care for minors. Judges reissued the summary statement that voters will see on November 2026 ballots to make clear rights were being repealed, not newly established.

The proposed constitutional amendment also includes a ban on gender-affirming health care for minors, a provision opponents say violates a state law requiring amendments only cover one subject.

Missouri doesn't have a marquee statewide race next year. But the results of some contests, including a Republican-written ballot measure to undo abortion rights, could be a big sign of a Democratic wave or continued GOP dominance.

Procedural abortions are available at three Planned Parenthood clinics in Missouri, but medication abortions remain completely unavailable as numerous legal fights unfold over the state's restrictions.

Catherine Hanaway recently returned to public office after nearly 20 years. As Missouri's attorney general, she’ll be handling major litigation involving abortion and congressional redistricting.

Since 2023, access to puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones has radically diminished in Missouri, thanks in part to national attention and political outcry.

Former Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey argued that reinstating the state's abortion regulations would not cause "irreparable harm" to patients. The appeals court rejected that claim, allowing Planned Parenthood clinics in Kansas City, Columbia and St. Louis to continue offering services.

The Missouri attorney general’s office is demanding Planned Parenthood hand over patient medical records and other documents for a pending court trial. We speak to a reporter to find out more about the case.

A Jackson County judge determined the nonprofit did not have standing to sue Missouri over the parental consent law. But she did not draw any conclusions about whether the restriction is unconstitutional under the abortion rights amendment passed by voters last year.

Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green ruled that Secretary of State Denny Hoskins' proposed ballot language was "fair and sufficient," even though it does not explicitly state that the constitutional amendment would again ban most abortions in Missouri.

Voters in both Kansas and Missouri have chosen to protect reproductive rights in their state constitutions. So why are abortion rights advocates challenging both states in court? We’ll have the latest on pending legal battles and the state of the abortion debate in the region.