The Ethics & Public Policy Center recently published the “Two Years After Dobbs” report, showing that between 2022 and 2024 every single state that protects life in the womb passed laws to expand support for pregnant women, new mothers, and their babies.
Missouri is among the states that have done the most to assist women and babies. For instance, in 2022, the state granted $11.5 million to the Division of Community and Public Health for family planning and pregnancy health-care services for low-income women; in 2023, it expanded postpartum Medicaid coverage from 60 days to one year after childbirth, authorized a $10,000 tax credit for adoption-related expenses, allocated $2.5 million in federal TANF dollars for a healthy marriage and fatherhood initiative, and assigned $8.6 million for an alternatives to abortion program that included material assistance like diapers. In 2024, Missouri allocated an additional $2 million grant to promote adoptions, organizations that support pregnant women, and maternity homes. The MCC has supported these and other bills aimed at supporting mothers and babies.
Even though Missouri fully protects unborn children, there is currently a pro-abortion initiative petition that seeks to enshrine abortion in the Missouri Constitution. While we wait for the secretary of state’s office to determine if it has enough valid signatures to appear in the ballot for the next general election, we encourage all Catholics to continue praying for life. To learn more about this issue, click here.