Advocates Demand Missouri Expands Medicaid Coverage by 2014

A campaign kicked off Wednesday to expand coverage to anyone making 138 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. Advocates say the move would cover an additional 250,000 Missourians.

Grassroots leaders and organizations in St. Louis converged Wednesday to announce a campaign to expand Medicaid coverage in Missouri, a move they say is critical for the state's working poor. During a press conference at Kirkwood Baptist Church, faith leaders, advocates and Medicaid customers called for Missouri to adopt legislation that expands coverage to anyone making 138 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL). Under the current system, Missouri does not offer Medicaid to single adults, unless they are disabled, and parents or caretakers with dependent children must make 25 percent of the FPL to receive Medicaid. (See PDF for comparison of current eligibility requirements versus those under an expanded coverage system.) "Missouri …

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Missouri Offering Tax Refund Debit Cards

Do you want your 2012 tax refund in the form of a debit card from the State of Missouri?

The debit card option is new for Missouri taxpayers this tax season, according to Missouri State Treasurer Clint Zweifel. Zweifel's office released the details of the new option Friday in the following news release. State Treasurer Clint Zweifel (ZWY-ful) announced today citizens have a new option to choose from when getting a tax refund from the State of Missouri. Taxpayers are now able to get a refund in the form of a debit card whether their return is filed on paper or electronically. The new refund option is for taxpayers who file individual income tax returns or Property Tax Credit (PTC) claims. This is the first year the Department of Revenue has offered the refund debit card. To receive the card, taxpayers will need to check the “…

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Mike K

10:52 am on Sunday, January 13, 2013

Other than that gaffe, it has limited appeal. There are very few people that have the problem of filing income taxes and not having a bank account. I would say that there is a very high probability that those that fit that profile are filing fraudulent returns that generate a refund. One trip to the ATM and turn it into cash will be the way the criminals defraud the rest of us taxpayers and don't…   more ›

Dream On: How Would You Spend $580 Million Powerball Jackpot?

The Associated Press is reporting that two winning Powerball tickets were sold for last night's drawing.

No one has stepped forward yet, but the Associated Press is reporting that two winning tickets were sold for last night's Powerball lottery. The AP says the winning Powerball tickets came from Missouri and Arizona. The winning numbers are 5, 16, 22, 23, 29 with the Powerball number of 6, according to the Powerball website.  Missouri Lottery officials say the winning ticket came from the Kansas City area. An exact store location will be released later today, according to spokeswoman Susan Goedde. “It is so exciting to sell one of these Powerball tickets,” said May Scheve Reardon, executive director of the Missouri Lottery, in a press release. “In addition, we sold two tickets that matched all five white balls, which means they each win $1 …

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Clint Zweifel Re-elected as Missouri State Treasurer

Democratic incumbent Clint Zweifel gave his acceptance speech just before midnight Tuesday, after a night of number watching in a close race with Republican challenger Cole McNary.

Democratic incumbent Clint Zweifel and Republican challenger Rep. Cole McNary faced off in the Nov. 6 election for the position of Missouri State Treasurer.  As results came in Tuesday night, both candidates gathered with friends and family at St. Louis area watch parties. Initially, it was a tight race, but ultimately Zweifel declared victory and thanked his supporters just before midnight. "I think a lot of this illustrates hard work and investment in each other," Zweifel said. With 100 percent of the precincts counted early Wednesday morning, Zweifel had 50.3 percent of the vote and McNary had 45.5 percent of the vote. Zweifel tells Patch McNary did call him and concede Tuesday night. Both parties tell Patch they knew it would be a …

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MoDOT Winter Weather Drill Puts Snow Plows on St. Louis Area Roads Wednesday

MoDOT is alerting drivers not to be alarmed if they see snow plows on the roads Wednesday. Severe weather is not on the way, MoDOT is performing a winter weather drill.

The Missouri Department of Transportation warns drivers they may see snow plows on the roads Wednesday. It's part of a statewide snow drill taking place throughout the day, MoDOT stated in a news release. (For instant news updates follow Patch on Facebook and Twitter.) MoDOT officials said they began preparing for the area's first winter storm months ago. In rural areas, crews will take to the streets after 8 a.m. and in urban areas, the drill will begin after 9 a.m., according to MoDOT. As a response to a simulated snowfall event, trucks with snowplows and spreaders will deploy across state routes during the drill that is set to take approximately six hours. "We have a detailed plan and our trucks drive set routes that allow us to work …

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Jim Frain

10:43 am on Wednesday, October 31, 2012

I certainly hope that MODOT does a better job this year with the snow removal than they have done with cutting the right of way areas that they are responsible for maintaining. Residents of O'fallon, MO are now being told to mow these areas that are on their property...and why? Because MODOT has no concern for maintaining their responsibility in these areas....Shame on MODOT and I question why …   more ›

Boy Scout Director: One Case of Abuse is Too Many

"Patch" has counted 205 Missouri cases in the so-called Boy Scout "perversion files" gathered by the Los Angeles Times. The Greater St. Louis Boy Council wants parents to know it’s working to prevent abuse within its ranks.

Recount Says Koenen to Face Wagner in November

A recount didn't change the outcome of Missouri's 2nd congressional district democratic primary vote.

Democrat Glenn Koenen, of Oakville, will face republican Ann Wagner for Missouri's second congressional seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Democratic challenger Harold Whitfield, of Kirkwood, requested a recount of the  Aug. 7 primary results after original returns showed a 48-vote difference between Whitfield and Koenen. The recount completed Wednesday shows Koenen winning the nomination with 7,894 votes to Whitfield's 7,848. Totals changed slightly with the recount but not enough for Whitfield to capture the majority of the votes, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Wednesday. Learn more at stltoday.com.

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Political Rewind: Gov. Nixon Logs $600k in Taxpayer-Funded Travel Expenses

Patch prides itself on local coverage, but Missouri politics can have just as much an effect as local government. Here's an easy guide to what happened this week on the state political scene.

Editor's Note: This article was created by aggregating news articles from Missouri Watchdog. McCaskill leads congressional candidates in out-of-state campaign donations Although Claire McCaskill is Missouri’s senator, they seem to love her in such places as New York, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. An examination of election donations shows that McCaskill, a Democrat, is the only Missouri congressional candidate who gets more individual campaign support from outside the Show Me State than from within its borders. Fifty-seven percent of the $6.3 million that McCaskill has raised for the 2012campaign from individual donations comes from other states. The next highest is District 5 incumbent Democrat Emanuel Cleaver, who has raised 41 …

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McCaskill: Rape Comment 'Window Into Akin's Mind'

Claire McCaskill appeared on MSNBC Monday to discuss Todd Akin's comment on 'legitimate rape,' which she calls a 'gut-check' for Missourians.

Claire McCaskill has been quick to respond to Todd Akin's comment Sunday in an interview with Patch news partner FOX2 that aired on Sunday with Charles Jaco in which Akin suggested the female body has ways of shutting down to prevent pregnancy during a "legitimate rape." See: Rep. Todd Akin On Hot Seat Over 'Legitimate Rape' Comment in FOX2 Interview After calling Akin's comment 'offensive' and 'outrageous' in a statement released Sunday, the Missouri Senator appeared on MSNBC Monday. "For the state I love, I hope this is a moment where everyone who hasn't been paying close attention, um, this statement is kind of a window into Todd Akin's mind," McCaskill said on Morning Joe.  McCaskill went onto note that Akin won the Republican primary …

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Top 20 Places to Live in Missouri

Hint: We're not one of them—at least, not according to this newly released list.

Coldwell Banker Real Estate released their list of the top 20 places in Missouri to live. Eighteen of the cities are in the St. Louis area, but none are in south St. Louis County. Here's the list: Affton, Shrewsbury and cities in south St. Louis county are notably absent. What do you think about that? Do we live in one of the top cities in Missouri? (Hint: We think so!)

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