Rebecca Smith
Health Reporter | KBIARebecca Smith is a reporter and producer for the KBIA Health & Wealth desk and Sound Medicine News. She was born and raised in Rolla, Missouri, and graduated with degrees in Journalism and Chemistry from Truman State University in May 2014. Rebecca comes to KBIA from St. Louis Public Radio, where she worked as the news intern and covered religion, neighborhood growth and the continued unrest in Ferguson, Missouri. Aside from her work, she is partial to long runs, good books and nerdy television shows.
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The first class of inmates and staff at a Kansas City women’s prison earned their associate’s degree from Rockhurst University in August. The program is unique in offering the same curriculum to both populations. -
Thirty-four Missouri residents — aged 11 months to 96 years — died due to heat-related illness in 2023, according to the Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services. -
The Missouri State Fair is underway, and more than 300,000 people are expected to head to Sedalia in the coming days. Keeping that many people safe is a responsibility that’s too big for the town of about 22,000 people — but each year they get plenty of help. -
The fur industry has a long history in Missouri and while it looks different — it is still around. -
You may have heard the ticks are bad this year due to the mild winter or ticks are getting worse in Missouri, but what’s the reality of these claims? -
The most common tick-borne illnesses in Missouri are Ehrlichiosis, Tularemia and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. -
During the summer, Missouri will reach temperatures that can be unsafely hot. Experts and advocates say this can be even more dangerous for unhoused people. -
WIC, or Women, Infants and Children, is an education and supplemental nutrition program for pregnant and postpartum people, as well as children up to age 5. -
While unemployment is at a near historic low, many businesses are still struggling to find workers – as many otherwise eligible workers in Missouri are out with short or long-term complications of long COVID. -
Throughout the summer, Missouri was an early hotspot for the delta variant of the coronavirus. This led to more unvaccinated young people getting severely ill, and as more young people got sick – more expectant mothers did too. -
Boone County has one of the highest vaccination rates in Missouri, according to the Department of Health & Senior Services. 49.0 percent of the county has completed their vaccine regiment, and 55.5 percent have at least begun the process. -
As the outreach counselor for Battle High School in Columbia, Missouri. Dana Harris’s job is connecting students with services when they have mental and...