Health Care
Missouri governor signs ban on gender-affirming care, restrictions for trans athletes
A week into Pride month, Gov. Mike Parson signed legislation Wednesday banning minors from beginning gender-affirming care and limiting sports participation for transgender athletes. In a press release announcing his decision to sign the bills, Parson said he supports every person’s right to “his or her own pursuit of happiness.” However, he continued, “we must […]
Judge hears arguments over Missouri AG push to inflate cost of abortion initiative petition
Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s attempt to increase the cost of an abortion-rights initiative petition was unprecedented and illegal, lawyers for the Missouri ACLU and state auditor’s office argued Wednesday in Cole County Court. ”No attorney general has ever attempted to exercise this level of discretion,” said Robert Tillman, deputy general counsel for Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick. […]
U.S. House committee approves bills on whole milk, condemns sheltering migrants in schools
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee on Tuesday passed several bills that are a rebuke of not only the Biden administration’s policies on immigration, child nutrition and health care, but regulations from the Obama era. The committee passed a resolution that condemns the use of public schools to shelter undocumented people, a […]
Company that makes opioid treatment settles with Missouri for $1.8 million
A company that makes a common treatment for opioid addiction has agreed to settle an anti-trust lawsuit filed by 41 states in 2016 for $102.5 million, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced Friday. Missouri will get $1.8 million from the settlement. The company, Indivior Inc., manufactures Suboxone, which is designed to dampen cravings for stronger […]
Half a million people in less than a dozen states have lost Medicaid coverage since April
More than 500,000 people across 11 states have lost their Medicaid coverage since the unwinding of a policy that allowed people to stay in the program throughout the pandemic. The data, reported by the states and tracked by health policy researcher KFF, shows that of the five states providing data on people who lost Medicaid coverage […]
Federal authorities move to close mammoth drug-pricing loophole
The federal agency that oversees Medicaid is moving to close a loophole that likely is worth billions to prescription drug middlemen. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services last week proposed a new rule that it said would help ensure compliance with a requirement under federal law that Medicaid dollars be spent in “proper and […]
Missouri nonprofit launches initiative to provide free emergency contraception by mail
Anyone with a Missouri address can now request emergency contraception pills be shipped to them by mail, for free, under a pilot program launched Thursday by a health care nonprofit. Missouri Family Health Council Inc. launched the “Free EC” initiative using federal Title X funds for family planning programs. Missourians can request the pills through […]
In the military, fertility policies and family building collide
If you’re a service member with a family, the military’s got your back. If you’re trying to start one, it can be another story. Active duty service members unable to conceive children naturally can face significant hurdles as the military health plan doesn’t cover reproductive assistance, such as in vitro fertilization, intrauterine insemination, a surrogate or adoption. […]
Births decline in most states, continuing a long-term trend
Fast-growing Texas and Florida had the biggest increases in the number of births last year, while a dozen other states — half of them in the South — continued to rebound from pandemic lows. In the United States as a whole, however, the number of births has plateaued after a modest increase following the worst […]
Fentanyl-related drugs permanently made criminal under bill passed by U.S. House
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers in the U.S. House passed bipartisan legislation Thursday in an effort to curb staggering overdose deaths from illegal fentanyl substances that are illicitly produced and up to 50 times stronger than heroin. The HALT Fentanyl Act, passed on a 289-133 vote with 74 Democratic votes and support from the Biden administration, would permanently categorize lab-made […]
St. Louis mayor signs executive order seeking to shield trans youth from new state laws
St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones on Thursday signed an executive order seeking to insulate transgender Missourians from bills passed by the state legislature restricting access to certain medical procedures for minors and limiting participation in school sports. “The responsibility now falls to local governments to take tangible steps to respond to this state intrusion into […]
Missouri agency says it’s increasingly utilizing more efficient Medicaid renewal process
Missouri’s social services department is increasingly using a more-efficient method to process Medicaid renewal applications, officials said Thursday during a quarterly meeting of the health care program’s oversight board. Preliminary data shared Thursday shows the state used a streamlined renewal process which doesn’t require enrollee action in 47% of all Medicaid renewal cases it evaluated […]