Alex Smith
Alex Smith began working in radio as an intern at the National Association of Farm Broadcasters. A few years and a couple of radio jobs later, he became the assistant producer of KCUR's magazine show, KC Currents. In January 2014 he became KCUR's health reporter.
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Gun buying among African Americans is up in recent years, and so are suicide rates among young Black men.
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Gun buying among African Americans has soared in recent years. So have suicide rates among young black men. Gun safety efforts and suicide prevention need to address race and cultural differences. -
The environmental movement is doing more to address the psychological toll on activists and volunteers, encouraging resilience and self-care to counteract anxiety and grief over planetary damage.
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Months after a court ordered Missouri to expand Medicaid, the state has been slow to reach out to hundreds of thousands of eligible residents who could benefit from the public health care program.
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After her son's death, a mother in the Midwest promotes mental health for environmentalists. It's part of a larger push to address the burnout and psychological stress that can affect activists.
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Missouri had the 4th highest rate in the country of residents taking benzodiazepines, and that was before the pandemic amped up anxiety. Experts say that long term use of these medications can cause lasting problems for patients.
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New cases and hospitalization in the Kansas City area continue to climb, even as the statewide spike shows signs of slowing.
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Younger children, who cannot yet be vaccinated, are among those who may be more susceptible to the more-contagious variant.
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COVID-19 cases are mounting again in Missouri, and unvaccinated individuals are at much higher risk than vaccinated people in crowds and indoor spaces.
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Vaccination rates in Kansas City, Missouri, and some metro counties are lower than in Joplin, where a Delta-variant surge is driving one of the highest new case rates in the state.
