COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Negotiations are still ongoing between MU Health Care and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, but a state senator is alleging they could be close to a deal. A spokesman with MU Health Care told ABC 17 News in an email that the hospital system talked with Anthem throughout the day on Friday,
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe signed into law this week Senate Bill 160, also known as “Danny’s Law.” The bill is set to take effect on Aug. 28 and aims to improve student safety by encouraging timely intervention during hazing incidents. Under the law, students who are the first to call 911 in
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Veterans Day will now be considered a paid holiday for University of Missouri System workers following Gov. Mike Kehoe’s signing of House Bill 419 on Wednesday. Local union LiUNA 955 released a statement in favor of the signing on Wednesday. “This is a huge victory for our union and for all UM-System
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Local after-school organizations are raising alarms about the Education Department’s plan to withhold nearly $7 billion in funds for the next fiscal year. Those funds include money for programs such as the Boys and Girls Club. If the funding is not released, Boys and Girls Clubs across the country could face widespread
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) As Missouri families fire up their grills for the Fourth of July, many will notice a sting at the checkout counter. Beef prices have surged to record highs, fueled by a “perfect storm” of drought, inflation and shrinking cattle herds — and Missouri farmers are feeling the squeeze. Ground beef prices reached an
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Trial dates have been scheduled for next year in the case over the name of Rock Bridge High School’s football field. Wayne Sells refiled a lawsuit in October 2024 against Columbia Public Schools over the naming rights to the field. Sells previously filed a lawsuit against the school district in 2021, claiming
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ) Monday’s Missouri Senate committee hearing brought University of Missouri Health Care and Anthem to the table, but not to a solution, as both groups walked away without a clear plan to cover the health care of thousands of Mid-Missourians. In testimony, both MU Health Care and Anthem claimed to have made
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By Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — A Trump administration investigation has found Harvard University in “violent violation” of the Civil Rights Act, once more escalating its battle with the school days after President Donald Trump suggested a deal was in sight to end its targeting of the university. Members of the Joint Task Force to
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Southern Boone School District is considering a schedule change for the 2026-27 school year. The district said in a Friday press release that it is considering changing its school week to four days. The release cites teacher recruitment and retention and enhancing student engagement for possible reasons. No changes will be
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A second man has been accused of stealing Mizzou football merchandise and gear from an athletic facility in March. Victor Decunha, of Columbia, was charged on Friday with first-degree burglary and second-degree burglary. He is not listed on the Boone County Jail roster and a $50,000 bond was set. He and Jace
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By John Fritze, CNN (CNN) — The Supreme Court on Friday backed a group of religious parents who want to opt their elementary school children out of engaging with LGBTQ books in the classroom, another major legal win for religious interests at the conservative high court. In the latest decision blurring the line that once
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Jefferson City Board of Education on Thursday night unanimously approved its operating budget for next school year. The $172 million budget includes the largest base pay increase Jefferson City teachers have seen in 17 years. Certified staff will see an $1,800 increase to $43,300. The total raise for teachers with one
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Leah Rainwater ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The University of Missouri System Board of Curators met at the St. Joseph Country Club ballroom on Thursday to attend to a wide variety of subjects affecting the state of Missouri as a whole. The University of Missouri has made a notable amendment to an item in
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Editors Note: This article has been edited to correct a meeting time. The University of Missouri Board of Curators is set to meet Thursday to approve its budget for the 2026 fiscal year. The proposed budget includes $5.3 billion in funding across all four campuses: The University of Missouri Columbia, The University
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A bond issue that was approved by voters this past spring, but was not certified by the state auditor’s office, is expected to appear on the ballot again this November. The Hallsville School District’s $6.5 million bond to complete the second part of a three-phase plan for construction to address the growing
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Editor’s note: Additional financial information about Anthem was added on June 25, 2025, as was information from an updated statement provided by MU Health Care. A paragraph describing the timeframe in which operating gains occurred for MU Health Care has been corrected. COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield says negotiations with MU Health
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Editor’s note: The sentence referring to the percentage of families who do not qualify for free or reduced lunch has been corrected. COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Leaders at Columbia Public Schools are looking at how to best tackle the more than $90,000 of student meal debt. The conversation continued at the Columbia Public Schools’ Finance Committee
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A fire was reported Tuesday in the bathroom of Waynesville Middle School, according to a social media post from the St. Robert Fire Department. The department wrote that it was called around 10 a.m. and found moderate smoke in the building. It found a fire in one of the bathrooms, which was
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A complaint filed against University of Missouri head football coach Eli Drinkwitz has been thrown out due to a lack of commissioners on the Missouri Ethics Commission. The complaint filed by Anthony Willroth, of Hold CoMo Accountable, stemmed from an Oct. 22 appearance on the weekly radio show “Tiger Talk” in which
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A “handful” of students and staff from Columbia Public Schools attended a national speech and debate tournament in Des Moines, Iowa, where a hoax threat occurred, according to a district spokeswoman. Spokesperson Michelle Baumstark wrote in a text message to ABC 17 News that fewer than 20 people from CPS were in
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