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Hospitals across Missouri are facing a “crisis” caring for patients in acute care settings who can’t find long-term care through the Department of Mental Health due to the agency’s chronic shortage of workers. Patty Morrow, vice president of behavioral health services for Mercy Health, testified during a legislative hearing Wednesday that “the problem is pervasive […]

The post Hospitals in ‘crisis’ as staff shortages persist at Missouri mental health facilities appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The first time Maureen Loyacono voted was in 1960, when she cast a ballot for John F. Kennedy. “And I’ve never missed an election since,” said Loyacono, 84, a Kansas City resident who also served as a poll worker for 40 years.   But she’s worried this might be the first election where her vote won’t […]

The post Voters, local election officials working to navigate Missouri’s new voting law appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The special legislative session called by Gov. Mike Parson to cut income taxes began Wednesday, and by the time lawmakers adjourned for the day, one thing was clear — there is no agreement on a plan. And that could upend the governor’s hopes of a quick session. In the state Senate, expected to act first […]

The post Multiple plans emerge as Missouri lawmakers begin governor’s tax cut special session appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Farmers and academics at a Wednesday hearing stressed the need for members of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee to support regenerative agriculture farming practices in the upcoming farm bill in order to protect topsoil. U.S. House Agriculture Committee Chair David Scott said he held the hearing to discuss ways policymakers and the Department […]

The post Topsoil protection should be stressed in the next farm bill, U.S. House Ag panel told appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON – Public relations firms aligned with oil and gas companies have tested the limits of their industry ethics and caused major slowdowns to federal climate change policy, Democrats on a U.S. House panel said at a Wednesday hearing. The firms’ conduct went beyond the bounds of ethical public relations work, Democrats on the House […]

The post PR work for ‘Big Oil’ helped stymie climate action, U.S. House Democrats say appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri officials said Wednesday Medicaid applications are now being processed within the federally-mandated timeline of 45 days, a step towards bringing the state into compliance with a mitigation plan to address a backlog of applications. Robert Knodell, the acting director of the Department of Social Services, broke the news to lawmakers Wednesday during a hearing […]

The post Missouri officials say Medicaid applications are now processed within federal deadline appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Biden administration plans to distribute more than $3 billion to fund projects that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon in agriculture and forestry — a tripling of its initial commitment in February. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack was set to publicly announce the expansion of the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program on […]

The post USDA more than triples funding for ‘climate smart’ agriculture appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Republicans are skeptical about a 15-week nationwide abortion ban that GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham introduced Tuesday, with some saying they want to leave the issue to state lawmakers instead of taking it up in Congress. “I think most of the members of my conference prefer that this be dealt with at […]

The post U.S. Senate Republicans shy away from proposed 15-week national abortion ban appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Five counties and health centers will not be permitted to intervene and appeal a ruling that struck down state regulations on the control of infectious diseases, a panel of judges on the Missouri Western District Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday. A three-judge panel affirmed a lower court’s ruling that St. Louis County, Jackson County, the […]

The post Counties can’t intervene in case that struck COVID regulations, appeals court rules appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Democratic Senate candidate Trudy Bush Valentine this week is rolling out a package of ethical standards she wants members of Congress to follow, including bans on individual stock trades and corporate political action committees. The point, she said in an interview Monday afternoon, is to increase transparency in government while blocking lawmakers from profiting personally […]

The post Democratic Senate candidate Valentine seeks ban on stock trades, corporate PAC donations appeared first on Missouri Independent.

When lawmakers return this week for a special session, most of the attention will be on Gov. Mike Parson’s proposal to cut income taxes by $700 million a year. But Parson also wants the bill to include several tax credits intended to benefit rural Missouri by increasing the demand for crop-based fuels, encouraging small meat […]

The post Rural incentives in Missouri tax cut proposal target biofuels, small producers for help appeared first on Missouri Independent.

An initiative petition to legalize recreational marijuana in Missouri will remain on the ballot after a panel of judges on the Missouri Western District Court of Appeals affirmed that the steps Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft took to certify the petition were proper. A three-judge panel heard arguments Monday afternoon in Kansas City and ruled […]

The post Appeals court leaves marijuana on Missouri ballot. Supreme Court refuses to take case appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A Cedar County judge Monday morning delayed a decision on the closure of Agape Boarding School, the Stockton-based reform school facing mounting abuse allegations from former students. Judge David Munton initially ordered Agape be shut down last week at the request of the state Attorney General and Department of Social Services. The state’s petition for […]

The post Missouri judge once again delays closing Agape Boarding School appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri Sen. Bill Eigel, a St. Charles County Republican who helped establish a faction of GOP senators that tied the legislature in procedural knots over the last two years, is exploring a run for governor.  Eigel announced his intentions to create an exploratory committee for a 2024 gubernatorial bid  at a fundraiser on Saturday. He […]

The post Founding member of Senate conservative caucus exploring 2024 run for Missouri governor appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The U.S. House is considering a bill that would put lynching sites in western Tennessee on track to become part of the National Park Service, part of a trend this year of Congress using the agency to advance discussions of the nation’s troubled and often violent racial history. A bill from U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, Tennessee Democrat, […]

The post Confronting history, Congress studies addition of lynching sites to national park system appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The American polity is dangerously divided, and people are deadly serious about politics (which isn’t irrational, since policy outcomes are indeed life or death for many). But it helps occasionally to pause and laugh at some of the dumb things candidates of both parties do. Indeed, it is one of our only common threads these […]

The post The five silliest things candidates told me during Missouri’s primary season appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has opened up millions of dollars in funding for groups serving unhoused people in rural areas — an unprecedented move by the agency, say housing advocates. People living in cars, parks, and on the street at night, which the agency labels unsheltered homelessness, has increased across the nation, […]

The post As rural homelessness increases, HUD aims money at helping people without access to shelters appeared first on Missouri Independent.

For almost two weeks, the only thing known about the ruling in the court case over child custody jurisdiction between former Gov. Eric Greitens and his ex-wife, Sheena Greitens, was that a Boone County judge agreed to move it to a Texas court. Associate Circuit Judge Leslie Schneider put her ruling under a tight seal, […]

The post Missouri judge sealed Greitens ruling. Texas court provided full details appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A Cole County Circuit Court Judge Friday dismissed a lawsuit that sought to block an initiative petition to legalize recreational marijuana from appearing on the November ballot. A day after a three-hour hearing, Cole County Judge Cotton Walker determined Joy Sweeney, an anti-drug legalization activist who filed the lawsuit, lacked standing to sue because she […]

The post Judge dismisses lawsuit that sought to block Missouri marijuana legalization from ballot appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Republicans in Congress are lukewarm about providing $47 billion in new emergency spending for the ongoing Ukrainian war against Russia’s invasion, COVID-19 and monkeypox public health campaigns, and to help states recover from natural disasters. GOP senators, who have returned to Washington after Congress’ summer break, aren’t so sure the Biden administration’s request […]

The post GOP balks at White House request for billions for public health, natural disasters, Ukraine appeared first on Missouri Independent.