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Some Missourians could lose Medicaid coverage as eligibility renewals restart April 1
Missouri’s social services department will resume conducting Medicaid eligibility renewals on April 1 — allowing the state to once again remove people from its rolls after a three-year pause during the COVID-19 state of emergency. Since March 2020, states have been barred from removing enrollees from Medicaid during the federally-declared public health emergency in exchange […]
‘Emotional roller coaster’: Delays in effort to shut down Agape dishearten former students
When he read the news back in September that Missouri had moved to shut down Agape Boarding School, Allen Knoll felt a sense of vindication. ”For me personally,” he said, “but also for current victims.” It was over a year and a half after Knoll had traveled to Missouri from Washington state to testify in […]
Federal spending bill ensures one year continuous coverage for Missouri kids in Medicaid, CHIP
Missouri will be required to provide year-long, continuous coverage for anyone under age 19 enrolled in Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, as part of a $1.7 trillion spending package approved by Congress Friday. In a move advocates have long pushed for as a way to avoid unnecessarily forcing children off the rolls, all […]
Judge grants injunction keeping longtime Agape director off Missouri child abuse registry
Agape Boarding School’s longtime director once again won a court order Wednesday keeping his name off Missouri’s central registry for child abuse and neglect. Cole County Circuit Court Judge Brian Stumpe granted Bryan Clemensen’s request for a preliminary injunction against Missouri’s Department of Social Services on Wednesday morning, the second time Clemensen has won a […]
Missouri awards over $40 million in low-income housing tax credits
The Missouri Housing Development Commission has approved over $40 million worth of federal and state tax credits to help developers build 1,791 low-income housing units around the state. In a meeting last week, the commission agreed to issue half the credits on an accelerated basis — the second year they’ve adopted the approach, which proponents […]
Longtime Agape director testifies in Missouri court to stay off child abuse registry
The former director of Agape Boarding School pleaded with a Cole County judge on Monday to keep himself off the state’s central registry of child abuse and neglect so he can keep working with children. Bryan Clemensen was the long-time director of the Stockton-based reform school for troubled boys until last month, he testified Monday. […]
Missouri has roughly $150 million left to distribute in federal housing assistance
The Missouri Housing development Commission has delivered $445 million of the roughly $593 million total, MHDC Director Kip Stetzler said Friday.
End of public health emergency could cause spike in uninsured Missouri children
Researchers warn the end of the federal public health emergency, which will likely occur next year and require states to redetermine eligibility for all Medicaid recipients, will put children at risk of inappropriately losing healthcare coverage.
Summer food benefits for low-income Missouri children likely delayed until well into winter
Because of a series of delays, the benefits designed to help families with summer food costs likely won’t be distributed until deep into winter.
Missourians seeking food assistance saw call center wait times increase over the summer
In May, Missouri residents applying for food assistance by phone had to wait on hold an average of 56 minutes to reach the required interview process, a delay a federal judge deemed “unacceptably long.” Yet over the summer, wait times continued to increase each month, according to data obtained this week by The Independent. Callers […]
Former camper suing Missouri-based Kanakuk claiming ‘fraudulent’ abuse settlement
A Branson-based Christian summer camp was sued last week by a former camper who alleges it concealed knowledge of a staffer's sexual misconduct to convince the camper's family to sign a settlement and non-disclosure agreement.
Nearly 350,000 Missouri children are too poor to receive full child tax credit
Roughly 345,000 Missouri children under age 17 are now excluded from receiving the full $2,000 child tax credit in Missouri, according to the report.