Jenny Bossaller, a professor of library sciences at the University of Missouri recently sat down with Robin Westphal, the Executive Director of Daniel Boone Regional Library in Columbia, to talk about the important role libraries can play – as a tool for connection.

University of Missouri Health Care and UnitedHealthcare announced an extension of their existing contract today that will last until April 30, 2027.

The Osage County Branch of the Missouri River Regional Libraries is located in Linn – and for the past year or so, they’ve been hosting programs that focus on fall prevention and an active lifestyle for area seniors.

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.

The Mexico-Audrain County Library District recently began offering a new service in partnership with a local doctor. Christal Bruner is the director of the library district and spoke about how patrons can now check out blood pressure monitors when they need them, as well as new books that help better explain this and other health conditions.

The Little Dixie Regional libraries, which cover Randolph and Monroe county, serve the health of their communities in lots of ways. Like a collection of small health equipment, such as thermometers and blood pressure cuffs, that can be checked out and a "Healing Library," a collection of interactive kits that allow families to tackle hard topics together.

An outbreak of H5 avian influenza was confirmed by United States health agencies in mid-2024. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the public health risk is currently low - but states are still monitoring the progression.

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.

Seclusion is a protocol used in hospital settings when a patient is displaying unsafe behaviors. Many organizations, including US healthcare accrediting body The Joint Commission, say that it should be used as a “last resort” - but at Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital in Columbia, rates of patient seclusion are among the highest in the nation.

Agricultural officials across the state are urging people who keep domestic poultry to practice proper biosecurity measures amid an outbreak of bird flu. A strain of bird flu called Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, or HPAI, has impacted flocks in 29 Missouri counties since 2022 and led to millions of birds being euthanized.