Reproductive rights

The Missouri Supreme Court ordered a Jackson County judge to lift her rulings that allowed abortions to resume in the state. Why did the court decide to put the ban back into effect for now?

Buying a new trumpet or trombone could get a lot more expensive, as Kansas City music store owners are getting hit hard by President Trump's on-again, off-again tariffs. Plus: A prominent Kansas abortion clinic has a new leader with plans to expand access.

“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.

The reproductive health nonprofit Right By You contends that Missouri's parental consent law is unconstitutional under Amendment 3, the abortion rights measure passed by voters last year. It's also challenging Missouri’s ban on aiding or assisting a minor seeking an abortion.

Alexis McGill Johnson says the passage of Amendment 3 in Missouri showed that the issue of abortion rights transcends party and gender lines. Despite the vote, Missouri Republicans are now attempting to put an abortion ban back on the statewide ballot.

The proposed amendment, if passed by the Senate and approved in a statewide election, would repeal the reproductive rights measure passed by voters in November. It would allow some exceptions in the first 12 weeks of gestation, but House Speaker Jon Patterson said that doesn't go far enough to protect assault victims.

The amendment, if passed by the Senate and then voters, would repeal the abortion rights amendment currently in Missouri's constitution, which voters just approved in November. Abortions would be illegal again in Missouri, with limited exceptions for rape, incest and medical emergencies.

Anti-abortion advocates are celebrating legislative wins after an expanded Republican supermajority in the Kansas Legislature overturned vetoes by the Democratic governor.

The Title X program was established in 1970 to provide reproductive health care for anyone who needs it. Planned Parenthood affiliates in Missouri, which provide a wide range of cancer testing and contraceptive care, reported their funds were frozen by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Planned Parenthood announced Friday that staff had begun offering surgical abortions in St. Louis, but the Missouri health department had rejected a plan that would allow doctors to dispense abortion medications — even though it was similar to what was approved before.

In Missouri, pregnant women can't get a divorce unless they have a custody agreement settled. "No matter how deep the pain, the law kept me legally bound to him," state Rep. Cecelie Williams said of her attempt to divorce her abusive husband while pregnant with their fourth child.