Michele Munz

Of course I picked the most difficult, nuanced subject to write about for my last story at the Post-Dispatch.

Missouri legalized abortion, but most residents can't get appointments and go elsewhere State figures show 80 abortions took place in Missouri clinics through October. Most Missourians seeking abortions are still traveling to other states.

More than a year after Missouri voters approved enshrining abortion rights into the state constitution, the vast majority of Missourians seeking the procedure are still traveling out of state. @michelemunz.bsky.social explains why. www.stltoday.com/news/local/m...

Thank you, Leah!

It’s hard, because I love journalism so much. This job has opened my eyes and heart in ways I never imagined, and for that I am most grateful. But I’m excited for a change and new adventures! Thank you to everyone who has shared their stories with me over the years. ❤️

Thank you so much 🥹

Founder leaves pioneering St. Louis 'bullet' clinic to focus on tornado recovery Dr. LJ Punch has resigned as medical director of the Bullet Related Injury Clinic and formed an organization focused on post-tornado care.

Founder leaves pioneering St. Louis 'bullet' clinic to focus on tornado recovery
www.stltoday.com/news/local/g...

FEMA to pay for crisis counseling for Missouri tornado victims One St. Louis agency will hire four full-time crisis counselors to canvas neighborhoods and attend community events.

FEMA to pay for crisis counseling for Missouri tornado victims
www.stltoday.com/news/local/m...

Love my city ❤️
My latest story is about how people are pitching in to help their neighbors, and how you can too:

Food drives launch across St. Louis area as region braces for halt in SNAP Free article: Organizations are organizing food drives, donating proceeds from sales and offering volunteers to prepare for the loss of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program beginning Saturday...

Food drives launch across St. Louis area as region braces for halt in SNAP
www.stltoday.com/news/local/m...

St. Louis residents turn to food banks amid aid cuts. 'Everything you need is going up' A grandmother who has seven family members living with her. A woman who's four months behind on her mortgage. A family displaced by May's tornado in St. Louis.

St. Louis residents turn to food banks amid aid cuts. 'Everything you need is going up'
www.stltoday.com/news/local/g...

Jamaa Birth Village in Ferguson adds school, library and a museum of Black midwifery Black midwives throughout history were not only experts in the birth process but also served as healers, herbalists, spiritual advisors and therapists for mothers and their families.

Jamaa Birth Village in Ferguson adds school, library and a museum of Black midwifery
www.stltoday.com/news/local/m...

More than 650,000 Missourians to lose food stamp benefits next month under shutdown More than 320,000 Missouri households rely on federal food stamp benefits to supplement their groceries

More than 650,000 Missourians to lose food stamp benefits next month under shutdown
www.stltoday.com/news/local/g...

Covid Vaccines in First Trimester Not Tied to Birth Defects, Study Finds

More evidence that the COVID vaccine is SAFE AND EFFECTIVE “A study of hundreds of thousands of infants in France did not find any increased risk of birth defects among those whose mothers received a Covid vaccine in the first trimester, building on previous evidence for the vaccines’ safety”

Federal shutdown threatens telehealth for Missouri seniors, some in-home care The shutdown means Medicare won't pay hospitals for some telehealth services

The shutdown means Medicare won’t pay hospitals for some telehealth services and it has halted a promising program used by the Mercy that allowed acutely ill patients to receive hospital-level care at home, just as wait times for hospital beds are increasing.
www.stltoday.com/news/local/g...

“Our trade policy right now makes no sense to me as a farmer,” said Blake Hurst, a farmer in northwest Missouri. “No, I don’t want the tariff money sent to me as a payment. I want to be able to sell my damn soybeans.”

They have fired the staff of the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report and 70 Epidemic Intelligence Service officers, who are disease detectives that respond to outbreaks around the world.

I cannot emphasize enough how dangerous it is to dismantle our disease surveillance infrastructure.

It could cost the state an additional $67 million next year to ensure Missouri complies with new federal work requirements for Medicaid recipients under rules brought forth this summer by President Donald Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill.”

Drive-thru, free flu vaccine clinics begin in St. Louis area amid vaccine confusion Free vaccination clinics are beginning across the St. Louis area as health officials prepare for respiratory virus season and work to overcome questions about vaccines and how to get them.

Drive-thru, free flu vaccine clinics begin in St. Louis area amid vaccine confusion
www.stltoday.com/news/local/m...

The internal pressures are in tandem with external pressures caused by the Trump administration, including a crackdown on immigration, which has contributed to major decline in international student enrollment — falling 22% this fall compared to last.

Confusion over federal COVID-19 vaccine guidelines affects St. Louis-area pharmacies Unsure how to proceed, pharmacies differ in how they are doling out the vaccine

Confusion over federal COVID-19 vaccine guidelines affects St. Louis-area pharmacies
www.stltoday.com/news/local/m...

Missouri’s local health departments have emerged as among the most trusted public services, according to a statewide poll recently conducted for the Missouri Public Health Institute, a nonprofit working to improve the state’s public health system.

Dang, I miss you Roland. Leave it to you to find this, lol, frightening picture and all!

The disease has mostly been considered one Americans get while traveling to another country, but scientists argue that enough evidence — including a case in MO — shows people can get infected here too.

Dangerous signs are being missed in Missouri pregnant women, leading to deaths This year’s maternal mortality report found a lack of knowledge of warning signs that require immediate follow-up.

Dangerous signs are being missed in Missouri pregnant women, leading to deaths
www.stltoday.com/news/local/m...

In blue states, nearly 80% of the CDC grant cuts have been restored, compared with fewer than 5% in red states, according to the KFF Health News analysis.

= Federal PREP funds support state programs on adolescent health and sex education, targeting groups with high teen birth rates, such those in foster care or in rural areas. =

@michelemunz.bsky.social >>

Feds order Missouri to cut references to gender identity in sex ed programs Forty states have been told to remove references to gender identity in sexual health education programs or risk losing millions of dollars.

Feds order Missouri to cut references to gender identity in sex ed programs
www.stltoday.com/news/local/e...

Man infected by brain-eating amoeba in Lake of the Ozarks has died The man was infected after water skiing at the lake during the first week of August.

Was hoping he might have been one of those rare cases that survives. 😢
www.stltoday.com/news/local/m...

Reproductive health mission is key to Missouri health agency's rebranding Beacon supports a regional network of 63 health centers in Missouri and three in Oklahoma, providing contraception, cancer screenings, and testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections.

Let's get to know each other! Check out yesterday's Beacon launch coverage from the Post-Dispatch. 👇

Special thanks to ‪@michelemunz.bsky.social‬ for helping us share the good news! 🙌

#WeAreBeacon #ReproFreedom #CareWithoutBarriers

‘Welcome to hell’: Inside the megaprison where the U.S. deported migrants Interviews with 16 former detainees of El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center offer the most complete view yet of conditions inside the notorious prison.

One was beaten unconscious. Others were covered in bruises, struggling to walk or vomiting blood. Another said he’d been sexually assaulted.

These are the stories of 16 former detainees who were deported to El Salvador’s mega prison.