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The 240-bed hospital in Rolla is more than doubling the size of its emergency department. The $60 million expansion is expected to open in 2027 with more and bigger rooms, private spaces to treat sexual assault victims and mental health patients as well as labs and diagnostic facilities. Phelps Health’s investment comes as smaller rural hospitals face financial challenges. Twenty-one hospitals have closed in Missouri over the past decade, many of them in rural areas. (Ahl, 9/30)

With food insecurity rising, Kentucky continues to aggressively investigate individuals on fraud allegations, with some legal experts claiming they rely too much on faulty evidence. (Goodman, 9/30)

From grocery stores to food distribution services, Black women are leading efforts to feed their communities. (Wright, 9/29)

Tribal nations in Oklahoma have historically been leaders in getting food to hungry people — both native and non-native. But uncertainty created by federal funding changes is causing concern for leaders of the Osage Nation and other tribes. (Pope, 9/30)

New Mexico’s Democratic lawmakers were set to meet Wednesday to begin shoring up safety net spending in response to President Donald Trump’s recent cuts in a top state for participation in Medicaid and federal food assistance. Legislators are seeking new food assistance spending, while Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is calling for a quick response to federal Medicaid and tax cuts signed by Trump. She wants to provide state grants that can stabilize health care services in rural areas where clinics and hospitals often rely heavily on Medicaid. (Lee, 10/1)

Bobby Faithful V is dying. He doesn’t know what will kill him first: the tumor in his brain, his failing heart, the infection in his left ventricular assist device, or yet another Medicaid denial. The 38-year-old Silver Spring, Maryland, resident — a musician and the fifth man in his family to bear his name — lives on a monthly $1,400 state disability check. Unable to afford rent, he crashes in a friend’s basement. “I’m technically homeless with a mailing address,” Faithful V says. His whole life, he always held two jobs at a time. He worked at the University of Richmond, was a full-time brewer, played in cover bands, and was married. And then he got sick and “lost everything.” (Durham, 9/30)

President Donald Trump’s administration said Tuesday that the state of Minnesota and its governing body for high school sports are violating a key federal law against sex discrimination by allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls sports. The ruling came from the civil rights offices at the U.S. Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services. (Karnowski, 9/30)

Doctors and hospitals serving more than 30,000 Mainers, including many state government workers, will move outside Anthem’s network effective Wednesday. (Rupertus and Burns, 9/30)

If you’re on Medicare, the owners of a Concord firm that specializes in the field have some advice: Open your mail. The reason? As of Oct. 1, insurance carriers in New Hampshire must notify Medicare Advantage customers if they will see a change in their coverage, including whether they’re going to stop offering the service altogether. (Brooks, 9/30)

St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery will have to immediately begin transporting jail detainees to receive medical care, a circuit judge ordered on Tuesday. The ruling is in response to the sheriff’s request last week for a temporary restraining order on Board Bill 33, a recently passed law that requires the Sheriff’s Office to provide such transports and submit to yearlong financial monitoring. Montgomery said the legislation is unconstitutional and challenged the city’s ability to define the duties of an elected county office. (Davis and Munoz, 9/30)