Abortion

The Missouri Supreme Court handed down a ruling that struck down injunctions put in place last year by Jackson County judge Jerri Zhang, effectively re-instating the state's near-total abortion ban.

The head of Planned Parenthood Great Plains said abortion services will continue in mid-Missouri, even after lawmakers passed House Joint Resolution 73 last week, which puts limitations on abortion before voters next year.

A newly enacted law allows the attorney general to challenge temporary injunctions, a move inspired by a pending abortion-rights case.

House Republicans have advanced a joint resolution to the floor which would put limits on abortion rights that voters added to the state constitution in November.

In-clinic abortion care has returned to Columbia after a long hiatus. KBIA’s Rebecca Smith takes us behind the scenes – on a tour of the local Planned Parenthood health clinic.

As of 8 a.m. Monday morning, abortions are once again available in Columbia. The procedure has been inaccessible to those living in mid-Missouri since the last abortion was performed at the Columbia Planned Parenthood clinic in 2018.

Republicans say that putting a new measure on the ballot to undo Amendment 3 is a priority for this legislative session.

Officials from a Kansas City Planned Parenthood on Tuesday confirmed the first procedure has been performed since the state almost completely outlawed abortion in 2022.

Margot Riphagen has been Planned Parenthood Great Rivers’ vice president of external affairs since April of last year. She was a leader in the coalition of abortion rights supporters that led to Amendment 3 passing in Missouri.

For the first time since 2018, Missouri lawmakers will work with a new governor. While outgoing Gov. Mike Parson pushed a more budget-focused agenda, Gov.-elect Mike Kehoe already has established policy goals.