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In its first days of operation in July, a newly revamped, national mental health hotline was already exceeding Missouri providers’ expectations as a wave of people dialed three numbers: 9-8-8. They ranged from the curious to those seeking help, and several providers across Missouri told The Independent calls had already increased by 50% within a […]

The post Missouri crisis centers see wave of calls since the 988 suicide hotline’s launch appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Journalists have a problem with “conspiracy theories.” I put the phrase in quotes because writers, editors and headline writers have a problem with those consecutive words — “conspiracy theories” — in their writing. It’s not because they are being duped into believing farcical truths about the world. Journalists are lumping all kinds of gaslighting, misinformation, […]

The post Elaborate lies spreading through U.S. can’t be dismissed as ‘conspiracy theories’ appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House on Friday cleared Democrats’ long-sought climate, health care and tax package, sending it to President Joe Biden for his signature. The roughly $750 billion measure is much smaller than the $2 trillion reconciliation package the House originally sent to the Senate in November. The final product left out dozens of […]

The post U.S. House Democrats send sweeping climate, health and tax legislation to Biden appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Friday unsealed the warrant that allowed the Federal Bureau of Investigation to search former President Donald Trump’s property at Mar-a-Lago in Florida earlier this week, revealing he’s under investigation for possibly violating the Espionage Act and obstruction of justice. The seven-page document, which includes a brief description of everything the […]

The post Search warrant shows Trump under investigation for possible Espionage Act violations appeared first on Missouri Independent.

This story was originally published by the Kansas City Beacon. On weekdays, Melissa Douds catches the 35th Street bus at 5:48 a.m. to get to her job as a facility worker at the Bartle Hall Convention Center. Starting at the Armour and Gillham stop in Hyde Park, she is only seven minutes from work by […]

The post Zero bus fare does not equal easy commutes for Kansas City riders appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The sweeping Inflation Reduction Act passed by Democrats in the U.S. Senate on Sunday takes on an issue that Americans have been screaming about for years: The high cost of prescription drugs. But while it will bring immediate relief to millions of seniors, several experts have said it may dampen development of new drugs and […]

The post Experts say drug measures in inflation bill are good for seniors, but there are downsides appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Ahead of the first hearing of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, I had the opportunity, — due to my more than 40 years in law enforcement — to share my thoughts as part of a panel discussion about what had happened on that terrible day and […]

The post On Jan. 6, I was bewildered. Now, I’m outraged appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The locations of lead service lines seem like the sort of thing someone would know, Congresswoman Sharice Davids said Thursday.  But as cities and counties across the U.S. grew, water utilities didn’t keep track of them all.  Now, they’re finally required to find them. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s updated lead and copper rule requires […]

The post Kansas Congresswoman Sharice Davids touts federal funds for lead pipe replacement appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Over the course of the next year, lawmakers on the U.S. House and Senate Agriculture committees will draft a new federal farm bill that will shape food, farm, conservation and nutrition programs across the country for the next five years. The omnibus law that began 90 years ago as crop supports now has […]

The post Farm bill season arrives: What’s the outlook for 2023? appeared first on Missouri Independent.

In the tiny town of Edgar Springs, Rebecca Varney recently won a small victory in her fight to access city records, though a final resolution of the long-running dispute isn’t in sight. In another Sunshine Law dispute, the Southern District Missouri Court of Appeals recently ruled a public health emergency doesn’t suspend the requirement for […]

The post Attorney sees victories in Missouri Sunshine Law cases over access to meetings, records appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Each year, National Health Center Week presents an opportunity to spotlight the contributions that community health centers make to our communities. This year, we are celebrating not only the outstanding care that  community health centers provide, but also the investment Missourians are making to keep this infrastructure strong. As the medical home to more than […]

The post Missouri budget makes smart investment in community health centers appeared first on Missouri Independent.

State health officials faced tough questions Wednesday from the board overseeing Missouri’s Medicaid program — with a focus on the persistently long wait times for applicants and heightened federal scrutiny of the program.

The post Missouri officials vow progress as Medicaid applicant wait time remains at 100 days appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden signed legislation into law Wednesday that will provide health care and benefits to veterans exposed to burn pits in Afghanistan and Iraq, achieving a long-term, personal goal. “I was in and out of Iraq over 20 times,” Biden said of prior trips to the war zone he took as both […]

The post Biden signs landmark bill aiding veterans exposed to burn pits overseas appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Tension among Republicans that has mired the Missouri Senate in gridlock over the last two years bubbled up again this week, as a GOP state senator and an adviser to the conservative caucus took aim at each other in dueling radio interviews.  Sen. Mike Cierpiot, R-Lee’s Summit, took the first shot, laying into the Senate […]

The post Republican divide in Missouri Senate boils over in Kansas City radio interviews appeared first on Missouri Independent.

One of the major aspects of Missouri’s recent primary was the number of races for which there actually was no contest. In more than half of the 180 state legislative districts on the ballot, one of the two major parties did not have a candidate. That meant that in those 100-single-party district primaries, the primary […]

The post Capitol Perspectives: Missouri’s one-party primaries appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Republicans in Congress fumed Tuesday in reaction to former President Donald Trump’s Monday evening statement that the FBI executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago, his home in Palm Beach, Florida. Democrats had little to say Tuesday about the apparent search, though some defended the execution of justice regardless of a person’s political power. The massive publicity […]

The post Republicans in Congress line up behind Trump after he says FBI searched Mar-a-Lago appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Three St. Louis police organizations have filed a lawsuit against the city to block a law expanding civilian oversight of the police.  The law, which was approved by the St. Louis Board of Alderman last month and signed last week by Mayor Tishaura Jones, would create the Division of Civilian Oversight. Over the next year, the […]

The post St. Louis police associations sue city to block the new civilian oversight law appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri voters will decide this November whether to legalize recreational marijuana, four years after they first approved the drug for medicinal use. Secretary of State John Ashcroft announced Tuesday an initiative petition to put the question before voters received 203,551 valid signatures across six Congressional districts — barely overcoming the minimum threshold in two Congressional […]

The post Missouri voters will decide whether to legalize marijuana this November election appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Federal officials last month approved a plan to help Missouri deal with “ongoing and persistent” delays in processing Medicaid applications that have left the state out of compliance with federal standards for nearly a year. Longtime observers of the state’s Medicaid program say the decision by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to intervene is […]

The post Federal government steps in to help pull Missouri out of Medicaid backlog appeared first on Missouri Independent.

States have recently focused their efforts to reduce the nation’s teacher shortage by promoting strategies that “remove or relax barriers to entry” to quickly bring new people into the teaching profession. California, for example, allows teacher candidates to skip basic skills and subject matter tests if they have taken approved college courses. New Mexico is […]

The post Recent efforts to combat teacher shortages don’t address the real problems appeared first on Missouri Independent.