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After 12 years representing Missouri in the U.S. Senate, Roy Blunt is stepping down, but not without leaving an indelible mark on health care.“He’s been a fantastic supporter of all of the appropriations requests as well as some of the legislation we’ve championed. He’s going to be greatly missed by obviously the state of Missouri, but nationally by lots of folks inside the mental health community as well as in the Alzheimer’s Association,” said Jerry Dowell, VP of public policy for the... Continue Reading »
A bipartisan bill appears poised to revitalize federal funding of state wildlife conservation efforts, including Missouri projects stretching from forest restoration in the Bootheel to giant salamander breeding in the Ozarks.Branded as a “once-in-a-generation” development and shepherded by two U.S. senators with direct ties to Missouri, the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act would give states about $1.4 billion in additional money for conservation each year if it advances on Capitol Hill.The... Continue Reading »
When our nation closed asylums — starting in the mid-1960s but culminating during the Reagan administration — people with mental illness were supposed to integrate into their communities while they were cared for in community mental health clinics; that didn’t happen.Instead, the mentally ill increasingly have ended up in jails, prisons or on the streets homeless. The original drive toward deinstitutionalizing mental health care was based on a sound concept: comprehensive mental health care... Continue Reading »
President John F. Kennedy signed a revolutionary piece of legislation into law on Oct. 31, 1963. No longer would Americans with behavioral health issues be warehoused in asylums. Instead, the Community Mental Health Act would fund clinics so that people with mental health issues and addiction could receive help right in their own communities. Less than a month later, Kennedy was tragically assassinated in Dallas. And, sadly, his goal never came to pass. But thanks to our bipartisan work in the... Continue Reading »
A critical piece of environmental legislation, championed by U.S. Sens. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., came “one huge step closer” to changing the way Missouri and other states protect wildlife.On Thursday, it passed out of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, 15-5, with both Blunt and Heinrich afterward indicating there should be no trouble getting the 60 votes needed in the Senate. In fact, the bill has 32 co-sponsors representing both parties, so it looks... Continue Reading »
If you ask any of his colleagues — from his time in the Missouri Legislature to the U.S. Senate and more — they’d say Senator Roy Blunt is one of the hardest-working individuals they’ve ever encountered. But if you ask Blunt, he feels as though he’s never worked a day in his life. That’s certainly not because he hasn’t put in countless hours serving Missouri in a variety of aspects, making an indelible generational impact on the state. But he loves his home and the people of Missouri and has a... Continue Reading »
U.S. Senator Roy Blunt, R-Mo, is calling on the nation’s education secretary to provide a detailed plan on how the Biden Administration is using federal money to help keep schools open.In a letter to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, Blunt is asking the secretary to account for billions of Congressional dollars.The Republican senator says despite the high vaccination rate among teachers, ample federal funding, and CDC-backed prevention strategies, a growing number... Continue Reading »
At a time when it has become difficult to find many areas of agreement in Washington, the outdoors have proven to be a real uniting force.The two of us were proud to help lead the bipartisan effort last year to pass the historic Great American Outdoors Act into law, which is already helping us tackle the longstanding infrastructure backlog at our national parks and public lands. We are now teaming up to make similar historic progress on species recovery and wildlife habitat.The abundance of many... Continue Reading »
It’s great to see bipartisanship breaking out in Washington, D.C. We had put it with the California condor and the whooping crane among the nation’s endangered species.Last week, U.S. Sens. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on behalf of RAWA — the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act. It would provide $1.3 billion in annual funding for American wildlife, with the money coming from fines collected from enforcement... Continue Reading »
Missouri is celebrating 200 years this year and to honor that, OzarksFirst is taking a look at the past 200 years and what has made Missouri significant all this time.OzarksFirst Political Analyst Dr. Brian Calfano met with a former history teacher turned Missouri’s Senior Senator, Roy Blunt. Blunt has a master’s degree in history and taught history at Marshfield High School before moving to politics.“There are a lot of Missourians that have led the way in so many different fields. You know,... Continue Reading »
U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.) announced that they have introduced the bipartisan Access to Breast Cancer Diagnosis Act. The legislation would make breast cancer diagnostic tests more accessible and affordable.“Early breast cancer detection saves lives,” said Blunt. “Unfortunately, many Americans had to postpone preventive care – including breast cancer screenings – because of the pandemic. With experts warning there could be a spike in demand for care for health... Continue Reading »
Moments after Cynthia Hartner received the first of her two Pfizer vaccination shots Thursday morning, U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., stopped to introduce himself to the Diamond resident.Even though she was wearing a mask, it was obvious she was smiling. She told him she definitely knew who he was: “All these years, and I’m finally happy to meet you.”After asking several questions concerning the vaccination procedure at Mercy Hospital Joplin, Blunt thanked Hartner for doing her part in helping slow... Continue Reading »
Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., made a trip Thursday to Mosaic Life Care, to mark the expansion of the University of Missouri Kansas City School of Medicine’s program in St. Joseph.The new expansion is part of a Medical Student Education Program that Blunt helped start in 2019. The program demonstrates the importance of keeping a supply line to rural health centers, he said.“Obviously if you can get that training closer to places that are struggling to find doctors, it should apply in medicine just like... Continue Reading »
COVID-19’s effect on education, and learning how schools and students dealt with the pandemic, brought U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt to Cape Girardeau on Wednesday.Blunt visited Central High School to be a part of a discussion with teachers, administrators and staff, and other local officials about the ongoing pandemic’s impact on the Cape Girardeau School District.Blunt and school superintendent Neil Glass guided the meeting at the front of the cafeteria with attendees seated, socially distanced. The... Continue Reading »
Senator Roy Blunt visited Columbia on Wednesday for the first time since announcing that he wouldn’t run for re-election next year.Blunt held a roundtable discussion at the Walsworth Family Columns Club at Faurot Field with many health leaders from MU Health Care, Truman Veterans' Hospital and the Board of Curators.Blunt discussed COVID-19 vaccines, efforts to improve mental health and his work to combat the opioid crisis.Blunt said he hopes everyone will get a vaccine when it becomes available... Continue Reading »
U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, and U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (Md.) introduced the No Fencing at the United States Capitol Complex Act. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC) previously introduced the legislation in the House. Their bipartisan, bicameral bill prohibits funding for permanent fencing around the U.S. Capitol complex. “The U.S. Capitol is the most iconic symbol of democracy in the world. How we respond to... Continue Reading »
Last week, U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.) helped introduce the Major Richard Star Act, bipartisan legislation to provide combat-injured veterans with less than 20 years of military service their full benefits.“It’s long overdue that these heroes – who could no longer continue serving due to injuries they sustained in combat – get the benefits they earned,” said Blunt. “This bill will help us honor these men and women for the significant sacrifices they made in their service to our nation.... Continue Reading »
Roy Blunt (Mo.), a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, announced that he is an original cosponsor of the Iran Sanctions Relief Review Act of 2021. The bill, introduced by U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty (Tenn.), would enable Congress to approve – or block – any administration effort to suspend or terminate U.S. sanctions against the Iranian regime.“Easing sanctions on the world’s number-one state sponsor of terrorism would be a dangerous mistake,” said Blunt. “The Iranian... Continue Reading »
Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt, the Republican leader of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, issued a release Friday that three Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics in Missouri were awarded a total of $8.7 million from COVID-19 emergency relief funding that was passed last year.Mark Twain Behavioral Health, which has locations in Kirksville, Macon and Hannibal, was awarded $3.4 million. Hi-Tech Charities in St. Louis... Continue Reading »
Mosaic Life Care and the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine will open up a program in St. Joseph for medical students starting in January.The program will be titled UMKC School of Medicine-St. Joseph, and a combination of six-year medical program students and traditional medical students that applied will start in January. The program is designed for students looking to practice medicine in rural Missouri.“As part of the University Missouri system, UMKC has always recognized... Continue Reading »
