Kelsey Proud

A Republican-led Missouri Senate committee has defeated a plan to expand Medicaid under President Barack Obama's health care law. The Senate Appropriations

The images of this past week's heavy snowfall in Missouri and across the Midwest are familiar and chaotic - cars in ditches, closed airports and overall

The building in Midtown which has become commonly known as the "Flying Saucer" will receive an award for its much-publicized transformation. The Missouri

Updated at 6:03 p.m. to include details on a House-Sen. joint committee's proposal to use performance-based criteria in a new Higher Ed. funding formula.

The announcement from Hostess that it would be shutting down three of its bakeries (St. Louis, Seattle and Cincinnati) and then, shutting down as a company

Updated at 3:35 p.m. on 1/16/13 The St. Louis circuit attorneys's office has identified the shooter at the Stevens Institute of Business and Arts as 34

Updated 11:37 a.m. with reaction from Mo. Sen. Claire McCaskill and at 12:01 p.m. with statements from community organizations and Mo. House Speaker Tim Jones. Updated 5:59 p.m. with additional reporting from St. Louis. Gov. Jay Nixon says expanding Medicaid eligibility in Missouri is both "the smart thing" and "the right thing to do." Nixon announced his support for the expansion Thursday, saying it could provide health care coverage to an additional 300,000 Missourians. “It’s the smart thing to do because if we take a pass on billions of healthcare dollars, dollars that come out of Missourians paychecks, the money will go to another state,” Nixon said. “They’ll get the benefit. We’ll get the bill.” Nixon and hospital officials warn without the expansion the state would not only lose additional federal funding, but current funds for Medicaid would drop dramatically. BJC president and chief executive Steve Lipstein says that would hurt hospitals that serve uninsured patients and the state’s economy. “We are the largest employer in the state of Missouri, and our ability to continue to sustain that employment in support of providing outstanding patient care is contingent upon the legislature approving the governor’s plan for expansion of Medicaid,” Lipstein said. BJC employs 25,000 people at hospitals throughout Missouri. Under a Supreme Court ruling earlier this year, each state can decide whether to enact the Medicaid expansion called for under President Barack Obama's health care law. The federal government pays the full cost starting in 2014, but states must begin paying a 5 percent share in 2017 that gradually increases to 10 percent by 2020. The Democratic governor says he will "work tirelessly" to persuade the Republican-led Legislature to approve the Medicaid expansion. Republican leaders have expressed concerns about its future cost to the state. Missouri Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill released the following statement regarding Nixon's announcement: “I applaud the announcement Governor Nixon made today—expanded coverage will boost the number of Missourians with access to life-saving health services, expand job opportunities, and protect rural hospitals which are at risk of closing from fiscal challenges. An expansion will ensure Missourians benefit from the taxes they pay instead of seeing that money and its benefits flow to other states. This is as commonsense as it gets. The next step is for the folks in Jefferson City to follow our lead. The Legislature should act now to support the Medicaid expansion, and create a Missouri-based health insurance exchange instead of handing its creation over to the federal government. I honestly never thought I’d see the day when the Missouri Legislature would willingly toss responsibility back to Washington and walk the other way.” Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives, Tim Jones (R, Eureka) also shared his thoughts: “Now is not the time to put our state on the end of yet another big-government program that will only increase the burden on future taxpayers. My first question to the Governor is this – where is the money to pay for this once the federal aid goes away? The federal government is providing the funding now, but it is likely to disappear in just a few years as our nation comes to grips with our crippling national debt. That would leave Missouri taxpayers holding the bag for a massive expansion of a very expensive entitlement program, and that is unacceptable.” Several community organizations also sent out a joint press release, comments are here by organization: Rabbi Susan Talve of Central Reform Congregation: “The Medicaid expansion is about bringing relief to hardworking Missourians who are suffering without health insurance today. Under the current system, many low-wage workers fall through the cracks of a broken system that excludes them from Medicaid but doesn’t pay them enough to buy private insurance. It is time for us to put an end to this suffering.” Lara Granich, Executive Director of Missouri Jobs with Justice: “Over the past two weeks, thousands of Missourians from across the state have contacted Governor Nixon, urging him to support the Medicaid expansion. We applaud the Governor for listening to his constituents, and for responding to these calls and e-mails by announcing his support today.” Sarah Durbin, Director of Public Policy and Advocacy at Paraquad: “Expanding Medicaid to cover more working Missourians means that people with disabilities can access the health care they need, even while working part-time. This represents a tremendous shift from our current system, where often the only way to qualify for Medicaid and receive vital services and support has been to stop working entirely. We are eager to see this expansion implemented in Missouri without delay.” Bunnie Gronborg, a Missouri Health Care for All Board member: “Several members of my family work tremendously hard but are uninsured. Any health concerns that arise mean unpaid time off work, financial debt, or delaying seeking treatment. Expanding Medicaid may give them better access to health care, which will allow them to stay healthy and better provide for their families. It will also bring good jobs to Missouri that our communities need.” Follow St. Louis Public Radio on Twitter: @stlpublicradio

Will be updated. The Missouri Farm Bureau political action committee announced that it's sticking by its endorsement of Congressman Todd Akin as he faces incumbent Claire McCaskill in the race for US Senate. In a release to the media, FARM-PAC, made up of trustees from the farm bureaus in every Missouri county, say that they again "overwhelmingly" voted to support Akin. “During the conference calls, some of our members brought up the statement made by Congressman Akin last month; however, they accepted his apology and reaffirmed this election is still about issues such as moving our country in a better direction, getting the federal deficit under control, eliminating needless government regulations and creating more jobs,” Blake Hurst, president of Missouri Farm Bureau said in the media release. The reconsideration of their earlier endorsement of Akin was, in their words, "unprecedented" for the group. A two-thirds majority is required to endorse a candidate, which Akin "far exceeded." If that requirement had not been met, the Missouri Farm Bureau would not have endorsed any candidate in the US Senate race. Estil Fretwell of FARM-PAC wouldn't get into specific numbers, but said the second vote was close to the same percentage as the first. Follow St. Louis Public Radio on Twitter: @stlpublicradio See more stories on issues and elections from St. Louis Public Radio, the St. Louis Beacon and Nine Network of Public Media at BeyondNovember.org.

The St. Louis Rams announced today via their official Twitter account that they will not be playing a select number of home games in London in the 2013-2014 seasons: https://twitter.com/STLouisRams/status/235074497718398976 A press release from the Rams says that the team will play against the New England Patriots in London on Oct. 28, 2012 as planned. Previously, the Rams were involved in a back-and-forth with the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission over whether the overseas home games violate the team's lease at the Edward Jones Dome, which the CVC oversees. However, the team and the CVC eventually came to an agreement. The CVC said in a statement that because that agreement was only for the 2012 season, the Rams' decision not to play in London in 2013 and 2014 does not affect the status of negotiations on the upgrades to the Dome - the "First Tier Process" referred to in the above tweet. The team's lease requires the Dome to be in the top 25 percent of football stadiums in the country.Otherwise, as we previously reported, the Rams are free to leave St. Louis in 2015. "...We believe our attention needs to be on the ongoing First Tier process," Kevin Demoff, Rams executive vice president and chief operating officer said in a release. "We have worked closely with the NFL in coming to this decision and remain key supporters of the international series and its’ objectives.” What does the NFL have to say about all of this? St. Louis Public Radio was sent this statement from Chris Parsons, NFL Vice President of International: "We appreciate the Rams support for our international growth strategy. We are currently working to add a second game in the UK, potentially for the 2013 season, in response to the growth in popularity of our sport. We hope to finalize these plans in the months ahead." Follow Kelsey Proud on Twitter: @KelseyProud Follow Rachel Lippmann on Twitter: @rlippmann

Updated at 4:55 with comments from interim dean Thomas Keefe. Updated at 4:20 with comments from current Student Bar Association president Updated 3:58...