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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Donavon Decker became, in more ways than one, an ambassador of limb girdle muscular dystrophy type 2D, a rare degenerative disorder. But decades after he participated in patient trials and fundraised for research, drug companies are still nowhere close to a cure. -
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. -
A new nationwide study found that state laws allowing people to use deadly force in self defense were associated with increases in gun violence. -
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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After her son's death, a mother in the Kansas promotes mental health for environmentalists. It's part of a larger push to address the burnout and psychological stress that can affect activists. -
Midwestern states had some of the nation's highest percentages of kids with detectable blood-lead levels. And the authors of a new nationwide study say there is no amount of lead that is safe for children. -
Biden administration officials announced plans for COVID-19 booster shots to be made widely available starting September 20. But local health departments and experts are scrambling to keep up with the latest guidance and research. -
Data collection for race and ethnicity vary among states, complicating efforts to distribute COVID-19 shots to all groups. In Missouri, health officials have questioned the data's usefulness. -
To avoid racial or ethnic disparities in vaccination rates, health officials are doing outreach. But demographic data quality varies between states. In Missouri, there are errors they can't quite fix.
