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The median age rose in almost every state last year, census estimates show, continuing a long-term trend that is pushing states to prepare for aging populations. Seventeen states had median ages over 40 in 2022, according to new U.S. Census Bureau estimates of the age at which half of residents are older and half are […]

The post We’re older than we used to be, especially in these states appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A Cole County judge on Monday rejected a call from the ACLU of Missouri that he direct Attorney General Andrew Bailey to comply with a court order to certify the fiscal summary on an abortion rights initiative. Circuit Judge Jon Beetem last Tuesday gave Bailey 24 hours to certify the fiscal summary to the auditor’s […]

The post Citing appeal, judge declines to order Missouri AG to comply with order on abortion initiative appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The 2024 Republican presidential primary marks the first time in half a century that candidates will debate whether abortion should be restricted or banned at the federal level without the Roe v. Wade ruling making most of their proposals moot. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last summer to overturn the nationwide, constitutional right […]

The post Where the GOP presidential candidates stand on national abortion bans, restrictions appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Hal Dempsey wanted to “escape Missouri.” Arlo Dennis is “fleeing Florida.” The Tillison family “can’t stay in Texas.” They are part of a new migration of Americans who are uprooting their lives in response to a raft of legislation across the country restricting health care for transgender people. Missouri, Florida, and Texas are among at […]

The post Medical exiles: Families flee states amid crackdown on transgender care appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Democratic governors and state lawmakers across the country are mobilizing against a surge of Republican restrictions on transgender health care by establishing their states as sanctuaries for gender-affirming care. Earlier this month, Democratic Gov. Wes Moore signed an executive order making Maryland the 11th state, plus the District of Columbia, to declare itself a sanctuary. […]

The post More blue states declare themselves sanctuaries for transgender health care appeared first on Missouri Independent.

One day in November 2022, I received a phone call from my mom urging me, excitedly, to come home for the weekend. She had a surprise. As a junior computer science major at Purdue University living two hours away from my family, I quickly booked a bus ticket for that Friday. When I arrived home, […]

The post Recruit the parents. Deport their kids. This is the fate of 200,000 legal immigrants appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri’s ban on abortion has had sweeping effects on health care, abortion rights advocates say — even though restrictions were already so severe many deemed the state “post-Roe” long before the landmark case was overturned. Saturday marks one year since the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional protections for the right to access abortion in the […]

The post Missouri advocates say abortion ban has far-reaching effect on health care appeared first on Missouri Independent.

City leaders in Storm Lake, a rural community of 11,000 in Northwest Iowa, are asking residents not to wash their cars or water their yards and gardens during the hottest part of the day. The city also has cut back on watering public recreational spaces, such as ballfields and golf courses. These are highly unusual […]

The post Drought hits the Midwest, threatening crops and the world’s food supply appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Missouri Supreme Court will hear arguments July 18 to decide whether the attorney general can override the state auditor and demand changes in the estimated cost of initiative petitions. On Tuesday, Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem gave Attorney General Andrew Bailey 24 hours to certify the fiscal note summary prepared by State Auditor […]

The post Missouri Supreme Court sets hearing date for abortion rights petition case appeared first on Missouri Independent.

On June 24, 2022, the landscape of reproductive healthcare in this country took a frightening turn for the worst. The Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization that overturned what had previously been a constitutional right to abortion set off a whirlwind of changes in healthcare – not only as related to […]

The post Opinion: Dobbs decision spurs moral injury to abortion patients, providers alike appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Complying with an order to certify the fiscal summary on 11 abortion petitions would be an “affirmative irreversible action” that he is entitled to refuse until an appeal is heard, Attorney General Andrew Bailey argued in a court filing Wednesday. Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem ordered Bailey on Tuesday to issue the certification to […]

The post ACLU calls ‘shenanigans’ on Missouri AG’s refusal to follow court order on abortion petition appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Jacob Angeli Chansley, who rose to prominence as the self-described “QAnon Shaman” and became, for many, the face of the Jan. 6 insurrection, is trying to get his sentence overturned and says he never renounced QAnon or felt duped by Donald Trump. At the same time, he’s trying to make money on his newfound fame. […]

The post ‘QAnon Shaman’ looks to overturn sentence, says he never renounced QAnon  appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — A group of U.S. Senate Democrats on Thursday approved funding levels for dozens of federal departments for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1 — setting up a likely clash with House Republicans as a deadline approaches later this year. The move to advance the spending plan was essential if Congress is going […]

The post U.S. Senate spending panel sets funding levels for annual bills  appeared first on Missouri Independent.

For decades, there’s been a global movement urging “plain packaging” on tobacco products — or packaging with limited colors and frills — after numerous studies found it makes cigarettes less appealing to young people.  Missouri will soon be a testing ground to see if plain packaging has the same impact for recreational marijuana. When voters […]

The post Missouri to be testing ground on plain packaging for cannabis products appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Economists have been predicting a recession for months, but the labor market has remained resilient, wage growth is higher than before the pandemic, and inflation continues to drop, now at 4% compared to 9.1% in June of last year. Despite this good news, consumers don’t feel confident about the future, according to the consumer confidence […]

The post Wage growth remains high, jobs are steady and inflation is falling so why are people worried? appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri ranks in the bottom third of all states for children’s health, according to a recent report using data from 2021. The annual Kids Count Data Book from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, released this month, evaluates states on four metrics of child well-being. Those are: health, economic well-being, education and family & community. For […]

The post Missouri lags behind most states in children’s health, report finds appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Editor’s note: This report is part of a special States Newsroom series on abortion access one year after the U.S. Supreme Court decision struck down the federal right to abortion. When the U.S. Supreme Court issued its Dobbs decision one year ago, people of childbearing age in states across the country suddenly faced what seemed […]

The post Echoing history, reliance upon travel rises for abortion care post-Dobbs appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Amidst a worsening teacher shortage, with 40.5% of the state’s educators leaving their school districts after three years, last fall’s Teacher Recruitment and Retention Blue Ribbon Commission recommended, among other steps, increasing salary and tuition assistance. Yet in the recently wrapped legislative session, the Missouri Senate failed to act on the House’s bill to raise the state’s minimum teacher salary from […]

The post Opinion: Make public education a key industry for Missouri appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Harleigh Walker wants U.S. senators to understand she is a typical 16-year-old girl. She likes Taylor Swift. She enjoys being on her school’s debate team. And she listens way too loudly to music in her room. “I’m just trying to be a teenager in America,” she told senators on the U.S. Senate Judiciary […]

The post ‘Lobbying for my right to exist’: US Senate panel examines how states target trans kids appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Democrats on Wednesday released new campaign ads and detailed how they plan to talk about abortion access and reproductive rights leading up to the 2024 elections. Top Democratic campaign leaders said during a press call they expect the issues will be key to regaining control of the U.S. House and keeping control of […]

The post Democrats predict abortion access, reproductive rights will be key issues in 2024  appeared first on Missouri Independent.