Kansas

New study ranks Missouri, Kansas among worst states for women’s health care: Here’s why

Published

1 year ago

July 22, 2024

New study ranks Missouri, Kansas among worst states for women’s health care: Here’s why

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A comprehensive study released July 18 by the Commonwealth Fund, a health care equity nonprofit and research group, ranks Missouri and Kansas among the worst states in the nation for a variety of women’s health metrics.

Missouri is the seventh-worst state in the nation for women’s health across many categories, including reproductive health care, mental health and mortality, the study found. Kansas is a little better, ranking the 20th worst for combined health outcomes.

The study also looked at factors including mental health, maternal mortality, syphilis rates and domestic violence. Here’s how Missouri and Kansas fared.

How does Missouri rank on women’s health care?

Missouri’s health and reproductive care outcomes are in the bottom fifth of states, ranking 43rd out of 50 states plus the District of Columbia. These factors include having the eighth-highest rates of death from breast cancer and cervical cancer, and the second-highest rates of poor mental health among adult women.

According to the study’s data, more than one in every four Missouri women between the ages of 18 and 64 reported “14 or more poor mental health days in the past month.” This persistently poor mental health can lead to other negative outcomes for Missouri women.

Missouri was also the 11th worst out of 50 states plus the District of Columbia for supporting women’s access to health care, the study found.

One in 10 Missouri women between the ages of 19 and 64 have no health insurance coverage, and nearly one in five in the 18–44 age range said they had skipped a necessary doctor’s visit in the past year because they couldn’t afford it.

Missouri also has the sixth-lowest rate of Pap smears for adult women, which can be used to detect cervical cancer and other health issues before they become debilitating.

While the study covers a wide variety of health issues, it places particular emphasis on reproductive and maternal health care. In this regard, it notes the effect of abortion bans in states like Missouri on broader women’s health issues.

“Many experts are concerned that abortion bans or limits may inadvertently reduce the number of providers offering maternity care, owing to increased risk of legal action that practices face,” the authors wrote.

Missouri’s near-total ban on abortion was implemented immediately after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, but reports suggest thousands of residents have received abortions in other states.

The state has 74 maternity care providers per 100,000 women of childbearing age—defined in the study as ages 15–44. That’s lower than the national average of just under 79 providers.

The effects on pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum care are evident: Just under 29 women die during pregnancy for every 100,000 live births in the state, and 11% of babies are born prematurely.

Pregnant women in Missouri are also at a significantly higher risk of intimate partner violence than the national average, with 5.6% experiencing this abuse during pregnancy compared to 3.1% nationwide.

How does Kansas rank on women’s health care?

In Kansas, women fare a little better than Missouri for health outcomes—but are still worse than average on most metrics.

Women in Kansas have the 10th lowest health insurance rate in the country, with 12% of women ages 19–64 living without coverage. And 18% of women ages 18–44 have skipped an important doctor’s appointment in the past year because they haven’t been able to afford care.

Women in Kansas typically have low rates of syphilis infection and high rates of vaccination for the flu and pneumonia compared to the national average. The state also has slightly above the national average rate of abortion clinics available per 100,000 women. Kansas voters enshrined the right to abortion in the state’s constitution in 2022, and the clinics often serve women from neighboring surrounding states where abortion is more restricted.

However, maternal health care access in Kansas lags behind even Missouri in terms of available providers. The state has only around 67.6 providers per 100,000 women aged 15–44, compared to the national average of 78.9.

Overall, Kansas ranked the second-worst for women’s health care in the Great Plains region, which in this study included Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. The only state below it was Missouri.

2024 The Kansas City Star. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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New study ranks Missouri, Kansas among worst states for women’s health care: Here’s why (2024, July 22)
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Kansas

IU football lands Kansas State transfer edge rusher Tobi Osunsanmi

Published

14 hours ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

IU football lands Kansas State transfer edge rusher Tobi Osunsanmi

Indiana’s portal haul continued to grow Sunday as multiple outlets reported the addition of Kansas State edge rusher Tobi Osunsanmi.

Osunsanmi has played in 36 games over the last four years and has 8.5 sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss. Most of that production came over the last two seasons. He has a total of 47 QB pressures during his college career.

In 2025 he played in six games and had 20 tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks. He suffered a season-ending injury in October.

He saw action in all 13 games in 2024 as a reserve defensive end and on special teams, recording 19 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and a forced fumble over 303 defensive snaps and 31 special teams plays.

In 2023 he saw time in all 13 games as a reserve linebacker, a rush end on passing downs and on special teams. He was tied for team-high honors with five tackles on kickoff coverage.

He played in four games in 2022 and preserved his redshirt.

The 6-foot-3 and 250-pound Osunsanmi has one year of eligibility remaining.

The Wichita, Kan. product (Wichita East H.S.) was regarded as the 232nd-best overall player in the nation for the Class of 2022 by 247Sports.

Osunsanmi will help fill the void left by outgoing edge rushers Mikail Kamara, Kellan Wyatt and Stephen Daley.

More transfer portal information:

For complete coverage of IU football recruiting, GO HERE.

The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”

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Kansas

Kansas football transfer portal tracker: Jan. 4 developments for KU

Published

1 day ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

Kansas football transfer portal tracker: Jan. 4 developments for KU

LAWRENCE — The Division I transfer portal window for college football is open from Jan. 2 through Jan. 16, and that means Sunday is another chance for the Kansas football program to shape its roster.

The Jayhawks already gained one public addition earlier this offseason in Grand Valley State transfer Jibriel Conde — whose signing was announced Dec. 4. Conde, who is making the jump up from Division II, is a 247Sports-rated three-star defensive lineman in the portal and is listed by KU as a defensive tackle. On Saturday, a number of current Kansas players — including redshirt freshman quarterback Isaiah Marshall, redshirt sophomore wide receiver Keaton Kubecka and redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Blake Herold — also outlined in social media posts on X that they are locked in with the program for the 2026 season.

Marshall is set to compete for the starting quarterback job next season. Kubecka has the chance to step up into a more significant role at wide receiver. Herold is in line to be a key part of Kansas’ defensive line.

Those positives, though, don’t outweigh the fact that there has been a sizable group of players who have revealed their intentions to transfer away. Looking overall, when it comes to those whose decisions became public before and after the portal opened, the significant names to know include redshirt senior safety Lyrik Rawls, redshirt junior linebacker Trey Lathan and freshman quarterback David McComb. Lathan led KU in tackles in 2025.

Check in here for more updates during this transfer portal window about a KU team that finished 5-7 during the 2025 season, with transfer ratings as outlined by 247Sports.

Kansas football transfer portal additions

Jibriel Conde (3-star defensive lineman from Grand Valley State) — KU lists him as a defensive tackle

Kansas football transfer portal departures

Joseph Sipp Jr. (linebacker)

Jacoby Davis (cornerback)

Dylan Brooks (defensive end)

Jaidyn Doss (wide receiver)

Carter Lavrusky (offensive lineman)

Trey Lathan (linebacker)

Tyler Mercer (offensive lineman)

Harry Stewart III (running back)

Caleb Redd (3-star edge) — KU lists him as a defensive end

Aundre Gibson (3-star cornerback)

David McComb (3-star quarterback)

Kene Anene (3-star interior offensive lineman) — KU lists him as an offensive lineman

Laquan Robinson (3-star safety)

Jameel Croft Jr. (3-star cornerback)

Logan Brantley (3-star linebacker)

Greydon Grimes (3-star offensive tackle) — KU lists him as an offensive lineman

Jon Jon Kamara (3-star linebacker)

Lyrik Rawls (3-star safety)

Damani Maxson (3-star safety)

Jaden Hamm (tight end)

Bryce Cohoon (wide receiver)

JaCorey Stewart (linebacker)

Johnny Thompson Jr. (running back)

Efren Jasso (punter)

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He was the 2022 National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

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