Missouri's 'secretive' new ID restrictions

Kansas City Today

Missouri quietly restricted its policy for transgender residents to change the gender markers on their state IDs. For some people, it was the last straw. Plus: How Children’s Mercy researchers are working to make genetic testing more accessible in rural Kansas.

Last month, the Missouri Department of Revenue quietly made it more difficult for residents to change the gender markers on their state ID. A new rule requires people to present either a court order or proof of “gender reassignment surgery.” As KBIA’s Anna Spidel reports, those new restrictions could create serious problems for transgender, nonbinary and intersex people in Missouri.

Genetic testing can offer answers for people with rare diseases, but there are still barriers to accessing it, especially in rural areas. Experts at Children’s Mercy Kansas City are working to remove those barriers. Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga of the Kansas News Service has this look at families taking part in the program.

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Kansas City Today is hosted today by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

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