Kansas City Medical Society

08/18/2026

August is National Immunization Awareness Month, a reminder to stay up to date on your vaccines and protect yourself, the ones you love and your community from serious diseases.

Adult immunizations: https://www.kdhe.ks.gov/2106/Adult-Immunizations

08/14/2026

For 52 years, physicians from the Kansas City Medical Society have volunteered their time and expertise at Kansas City Shepherd’s Center! (1974–2026)

Earlier this month, Dr. Rusty Ryan presented an educational talk on bacterial infections, continuing this longstanding tradition of serving and educating our community.

A special thank-you to the Kansas City Medical Society Foundation’s Retired Physicians Organization, whose members have delivered more than 30 educational presentations to community organizations on a variety of health topics so far this year. We’re grateful for their continued commitment to sharing their knowledge and making a difference in our community!

08/07/2026

More than 333,000 Missourians lost Medicaid coverage between January 2025 and February 2026. Nearly 92 percent of those terminations were procedural, meaning the state could not confirm whether the person was still eligible, not that they were found ineligible.

Reporting from the Missouri Independent traces much of this to renewal paperwork that gets lost in the process. Forms go to outdated addresses and notices arrive dense and hard to parse. Cases are sometimes closed automatically if department staff have not finished processing paperwork before a 30 day deadline, even when the patient submitted everything on time.
Missouri is preparing to implement twice yearly eligibility re-verifications and new federal work requirements by January 2027, adding more paperwork checkpoints to a system that is already dropping eligible people through the cracks.

Missouri Independent article linked in the comments.

08/04/2026

Today is Election Day in Kansas and Missouri!

Kansas polls are open 7am to 7pm. Missouri polls are open 6am to 7pm.

Kansas will decide how the state selects its Supreme Court justices.
Missouri voters will decide five ballot measures, including Amendment 5 on the state income tax.

Bring a valid photo ID and make a plan to vote.


Health Forward Foundation REACH Healthcare Foundation

08/03/2026

Tomorrow is Election Day in Kansas and Missouri.

Kansas polls are open 7am to 7pm. Missouri polls are open 6am to 7pm.

Every Kansas voter, regardless of party, will decide how the state selects its Supreme Court justices. Missouri voters will decide five ballot measures, including Amendment 5 on the state income tax.

Bring a valid photo ID and make a plan to vote.


Health Forward Foundation REACH Healthcare Foundation

07/30/2026

The federal rule implementing Medicaid work requirements takes effect this Friday, July 31, and so does the deadline to submit public comments on it.

CMS (The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services) issued the interim final rule for the One Big Beautiful Bill Medicaid work rule on June 1. States now have until January 1, 2027 to implement an 80 hour per month community engagement requirement for adults ages 19 to 64 who qualify through Medicaid expansion. Missouri's roughly 300,000 expansion enrollees fall within that population.

Providers who see firsthand how documentation burdens and eligibility churn affect patients have exactly the kind of perspective CMS is required to consider before the rule is finalized. Comments can be submitted via the link in the comments through Friday's deadline.

Health Forward Foundation |

07/28/2026

Missouri voters will decide in the August primary on a constitutional amendment to eliminate the state income tax. The measure would also grant the legislature broad new authority to levy sales taxes on currently exempt goods and services, potentially including prescription drugs and doctor visits. Income tax currently funds close to two-thirds of Missouri's general revenue budget, an estimated $8.7 billion in 2026.

Supporters say elimination would be phased in gradually and tied to revenue targets. Critics, including AARP Missouri, warn it could open the door to new taxes on healthcare and other currently exempt services, threatening programs like home and community-based care if replacement revenue falls short. The governor's office has said it would not support taxing healthcare, agriculture, or real estate, though the legislature would decide final exemptions. KCMS Foundation is not taking a position on this amendment.

For physicians and health system partners, the mechanics are worth understanding regardless of personal view on the policy. A handful of states already tax medical services or prescription drugs, so this isn't without precedent, but eliminating a tax that funds two-thirds of a state's budget is nearly unprecedented nationally. We encourage our physician network and health partners to get informed on what's actually on the ballot and to vote in the August 4th Primary. Full reporting from KFF Health News linked in comments.

Full reporting from KFF Health News can be found in the link below.

07/17/2026

Reminder: Tomorrow, July 18, from 10am to 1pm, the Masonic Cancer Alliance's HOPE on Wheels bus will be at the Overland Park Masonic Lodge, 8109 Overland Park Drive, offering free skin, prostate, and colorectal cancer screenings, plus on site mammograms through the University of Kansas Health System.

No appointment, no insurance, and no referral needed.

Masonic Cancer Alliance


https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1D2ezBEH8x/

𝗬𝗢𝗨'𝗥𝗘 𝗜𝗡𝗩𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗗!
Join us for a health and cancer screening hosted by the Kansas Masons, Overland Park, KS Masonic Lodge #436, and the Masonic Cancer Alliance. This community outreach event is open to the public. All ages are welcome. Registration is not required, except for mammograms. Insurance is not required.

𝗪𝗛𝗘𝗡:
Saturday, July 18, 2026
10:00 am – 1:00 pm

𝗪𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘:
Overland Park Masonic Lodge #436
8109 Overland Park Drive
Overland Park, KS 66204

𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧:
• 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 Prostate cancer screenings
• 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 Skin cancer screenings
• 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 Take-home colorectal cancer screening kits
• 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 Genetic testing education
• 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 Radon home testing kits (while supplies last)
• Mammograms:
- To register for a mammogram, call Chavely at 913-945-7864.
- If you have insurance, the mammogram will be billed to your insurance.
- If you do NOT have insurance, the MCA will cover the cost of the mammogram.

𝗤𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦?
Contact Jon Allee:
913-375-8980
[email protected]

Kansas Masonic Foundation

07/16/2026

Advance voting for the August 4 Kansas primary begins this week. Mail ballots have started being sent and in person advance voting is opening on a rolling basis, with every county required to offer it no later than July 28.

There’s a correlation between voter turnout and health outcomes. The same conditions that predict whether someone votes, stable transportation, flexible work hours, childcare, trust that their voice counts, are the same conditions that predict whether a patient makes it back for a follow up appointment.

If a patient mentions trouble getting to appointments, an inflexible schedule, or no one to watch the kids, those are frequently the same barriers standing between them and the polls. Advance voting's wider window exists in part to reduce that friction. Knowing the dates well enough to mention them costs nothing.

Find your county's advance voting schedule at the link below.

REACH Healthcare Foundation
Health Forward Foundation

07/15/2026

July is Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, established to bring national attention to the unique mental health needs of underrepresented communities.

Access to mental health care is shaped by the same forces that shape access to any care: insurance status, transportation, language, and whether a patient trusts the person across the exam table. A referral only helps if the specialist on the other end is reachable, affordable, and culturally responsive to the patient sitting in front of you.

Physicians are often the first point of contact for a patient in distress, and sometimes the only one. A short screening question built into a routine visit, paired with a warm handoff to a known community resource can be the difference between a referral that works and one that doesn't.

NAMI Greater Kansas City

July is Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month! Established by Congress in 2008, this month focuses on improving access to mental health care, raising awareness of mental health issues among minorities, and enhancing services for those with severe mental health disorders.